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Tuesday / November 5. 2024
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The divestiture of GSS is a key step in FMC’s strategic plan to focus solely on innovating products and services for the global crop protection market.

FMC Corporation and Environmental Science U.S. LLC, known as Envu, announced the successful completion of the sale of FMC’s Global Specialty Solutions (GSS) business to Envu. The companies announced the signing of a definitive acquisition agreement on July 11, 2024, and have now satisfied all necessary conditions and regulatory approvals.

The divestiture of GSS, which includes a line of products that serve a diverse mix of non-crop markets such as golf courses, professional sports stadiums and pest control, is a key step in FMC’s strategic plan to focus solely on innovating products and services for the global crop protection market.

“The successful sale of our GSS business to Envu marks an important milestone for FMC,” said Pierre Brondeau, FMC Chairman and CEO. “This transaction enables us to further sharpen our focus on our core agricultural business while ensuring the GSS business and employees have the right partner in Envu to support their continued growth and success. We look forward to our ongoing collaboration with Envu to ensure a smooth transition and drive innovation in the non-crop market.”

As part of the agreement, FMC will work with Envu through the companies’ transition period and will remain a contracted supplier of key products and actives. This ongoing collaboration will support a seamless transition for customers and employees while allowing Envu continued access to innovation.

“This is a very exciting day for Envu, and we believe for our customers as well,” said Gilles Galliou, Envu CEO. “Now that the deal is closed, we will move quickly to begin integrating the GSS team and exploring ways that we can leverage our collective strengths to deliver more innovation and more value for our customers. We look forward to continuing to collaborate with FMC as a trusted supplier and partner.”

The divestiture of GSS is a key

Envu will purchase the GSS business for a purchase price of $350 million, subject to closing working capital adjustment.

FMC Corporation, a leading global agricultural sciences company, announced it has signed a definitive agreement to sell its Global Specialty Solutions (GSS) business to Environmental Science US, LLC, known as Envu, an environmental science company providing innovations that protect and enhance the health of environments around the world. Envu will purchase the GSS business for a purchase price of $350 million, subject to closing working capital adjustment.

In November 2023, FMC announced plans to explore strategic options for GSS, which includes a line of products that serve a diverse mix of non-crop markets such as golf courses, professional sports stadiums and pest control. As FMC concentrates on innovating products and services for the global crop protection market, GSS no longer has a clear, strategic role in the company’s mid- or longer-term goals.

“Global Specialty Solutions is a profitable business with a strong history of growth. We believe this agreement with Envu will provide the attention and resources it needs to continue thriving,” said Pierre Brondeau, FMC Chairman and CEO. “With this divestment, FMC can focus solely on its core business.”

Envu, which was acquired by international private equity firm Cinven in 2022, is solely dedicated to the environmental science sector and sees GSS as an opportunity to support its growth strategy while continuing to deliver powerful innovations for customers in professional pest management, turf & ornamentals and more.

“As a focused company that is dedicated to delivering forward-thinking solutions for our customers, we are excited by the prospect of joining forces with the GSS business,” said Gilles Galliou, Envu CEO. “We see significant synergies and potential for accelerated innovation from the combination. In addition, as the successful outcome of a carveout transaction ourselves, we believe we are the ideal partner to help GSS through this transition and maximize our collective potential.”

Marco Strizzi, Senior Principal at Cinven, added: “We are delighted to bring together two highly respected, complementary businesses with a shared focus on delivering seamless customer service and product innovation in the attractive environmental science market. We see FMC GSS as a compelling addition to Envu strategically and financially and look forward to continuing to support the combined business’ strong growth trajectory.”

The transaction is expected to close by year-end 2024, subject to regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions. FMC intends to allocate all proceeds from the sale to debt reduction.

BofA Securities acted as financial adviser and McCarter & English was legal adviser to FMC, while Barclays acted as financial adviser and Baker McKenzie was legal adviser to Envu for the transaction. Further terms and conditions of the agreement were not disclosed.

Envu will purchase the GSS business for