Affiliate of Lone Star funds agrees to acquire AOC from CVC Capital Partners Fund VI

Headquartered in Schiphol, The Netherlands, AOC is a global CASE & Colorants leader, producing and formulating unsaturated polyester resins, vinyl ester resins, and other solutions for applications in Coatings & Protective Barriers, Colorants & Visual Effects, Adhesives, and Conventional Composite Resins.

AOC serves customers globally with specialty products for the automotive, marine, corrosion, construction, and infrastructure segments. The Company has production facilities in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Europe, and Asia.
Under CVC Funds’ ownership, AOC realized significant growth, evolving from a strong regional player to a global composites leader through the strategic combination with The Alpha Corporation in 2018. Under the leadership of Joe Salley, AOC developed into a best-in-class specialty resins platform with a clear path for continued sustainable growth.

Steven Buyse, a Managing Partner at CVC, said:
“We are tremendously proud of the achievements of AOC and its management team. AOC is an outstanding business, and we want to thank Joe Salley and the rest of the management team for the successful partnership and wish them every success in the envisaged next phase of AOC’s exciting journey.”

Donald Quintin, President, Opportunity Funds, Lone Star said:
“Lone Star recognizes AOC’s role as a trusted partner to thousands of customers across the globe seeking to optimize the critical performance attributes of their products. AOC’s world class management team has positioned the company to accelerate its growth trajectory in a variety of end markets, applications, and geographies through operational excellence and continued product innovation. AOC aligns well with Lone Star’s portfolio of specialty chemical and manufacturing businesses, which have adopted similar approaches to value-add product delivery. We look forward to the envisaged partnership with the AOC team as the company continues to execute its growth strategy.”

Joe Salley, CEO of AOC, said:
“I am very proud of the accomplishments of my colleagues, and on their behalf, extend our gratitude to CVC for their stewardship of this business. Steven Buyse and his team have been ideal sponsors; our successes and opportunities would not have been possible without them. We are excited about the prospects for AOC and the envisaged partnership with the Lone Star team to create an even stronger company.”

J.P. Morgan served as financial adviser on the transaction to CVC, with Clifford Chance as legal counsel. Lone Star was advised by Lazard and Vinson & Elkins. Management was advised by Jamieson Corporate Finance, Katzke and Morgenbesser. BofA Securities and RBC Capital Markets provided the financing commitments for the transaction, and Kirkland & Ellis LLP acted as legal advisor to Lone Star on the financing commitments.