FRANCE: Saint-Gobain divests its expanded polystyrene (EPS) business in France

Saint-Gobain, through its French subsidiary Placoplatre, has reached an agreement with HIRSCH Servo Group and BEWiSynbra Group to sell its expanded polystyrene (EPS) business in France. Saint-Gobain previously sold its German EPS business to HIRSCH.

Saint-Gobain’s French EPS business has 6 industrial sites with around 240 employees and generated sales of around EUR 70 million in 2018. The completion of this transaction is subject to the approval of the relevant competition authorities. The transaction should be effective by the end of 2019.

This transaction is part of Saint-Gobain’s portfolio optimization strategy within the framework of its new organization. Divestments completed or signed by the Group to date in order to enhance its growth and profitability profile represent sales of over EUR 3.2 billion. Saint-Gobain is continuing its divestment program even though the initial target of over EUR 3 billion in sales divested by the end of the year has already been met.

Source: Saint-Gobain website, 4 Nov 2019
(Syed Rashid Ali, Karachi, Pakistan)