Oaktree-backed Fusheng buys German air compressor maker

Fusheng Industrial, founded in 1953, produces industrial compressors used in construction and manufacturing, and has manufacturing capabilities in China, Taiwan, and the US, where it operates under the brands FSElliott and FSCurtis.

In 2007, Oaktree teamed up with the founding Lee family to take Fusheng private in a deal said to be worth $850 million.

With the adoption of more efficient and cleaner technologies, Liang-Chen Lee, chairman of Fusheng Industria, said the global compressor market is expected to grow 5% per year over the next five years. The merger will help expand Fusheng's global business across Europe, Asia and North America.

"ALMiG has built an impressive position in the European market over its 80 year history," he said. "They have an outstanding reputation for high quality engineering and design and we are excited about bringing that capability to the global market."

ALMiG - which employs over 300 people across its operations - specializes in energy-efficient and oil-free industrial air compressors with production sites in Germany and Austria. It also operates service and distribution centers in over a dozen countries in Europe and the US.

This is the latest in a string of Chinese outbound acquisitions in Germany. In September, a Chinese machinery group was said to be in exclusive talks with US-based Madison Capital to buy its German rival KraussMaffei Technologies in a deal that would fetch as much as EUR700 million ($908 million).

In the same month, Weichai Power, a Chinese automotive and equipment manufacturer owned by Shandong Heavy Industry, also agreed to invest EUR738 million in Kion, the German forklift truckmaker backed by KKR and Goldman Sachs.

In January, Sany Heavy Industry, a Chinese construction-equipment maker, and CITIC Private Equity announced that they would invest EUR360 million in Putzmeister, a German manufacturer of high-tech concrete pumps.

Separately, Sino-European private equity firm Mandarin Capital Partners told AVCJ earlier that it is nearing a EUR500 million first close for its EUR1 billion second fund. The vehicle will target advanced manufacturing and services companies across China and German-speaking parts of Europe.

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• Topics
• Greater China
• Europe
• Industrials
• Buyouts
• Outbound investment
• China
• Europe
• Oaktree Capital