Clearwater has advised MAHLE GmbH (MAHLE), a leading international development partner and supplier to the automotive industry, on the sale of its thermostat business to Admetos GmbH (ADMETOS), an owner-led industrial and investment holding company for SMEs. The two sides have signed a contract to this effect at the beginning of August. The completion of this transaction is still subject to several closing conditions being met.
MAHLE is a leading worldwide Tier I German automotive systems and components supplier, with customers in both the passenger and commercial vehicle sectors. The technology group, founded in 1920 and headquartered in Stuttgart, is working on the climate-neutral mobility of tomorrow, focusing on electromobility and thermal management, as well as other technologies for reducing CO2 emissions such as fuel cells or highly efficient, clean combustion engines that also run on synthetic fuels or hydrogen. Today, every second vehicle worldwide is equipped with MAHLE components. The company is represented in 30 countries, with 72,000 employees across 152 production locations and 12 major research and development centres. MAHLE generated sales of more than €12bn in 2022.
With its new strategy, MAHLE is focusing on electrification and thermal management systems as well as cost leadership in components for highly efficient, green combustion engines. In this context, the company has decided to sell its thermostat product area, as this will not be a strategic MAHLE business segment in the future. The thermostat business is a global leading supplier and partner to OEMs, for components that regulate the cooling water temperature of combustion engines. Its thermostats are manufactured for both the automotive original equipment and spare parts businesses. The product division has a broad customer portfolio with long term orders placed. Its distribution of thermostats in the spare parts and accessories trade, under the MAHLE and Behr brands, will continue to be carried out via the worldwide network of MAHLE Aftermarket.
ADMETOS takes over the development and production sites with around 600 employees in six countries including Qingdao (China), Berga (Germany), Querétaro (Mexico), as well as the development area for thermostats in Stuttgart (Germany). In Mühlacker (Germany), Busan (South Korea), Grugliasco (Italy), and Holýsov (Czech Republic), only the production areas for thermostats are affected.
Headquartered in Starnberg near Munich, Germany, ADMETOS is a diversified, owner-managed industrial holding and investment company for medium-sized businesses. Together with its investment partners, ADMETOS combines the advantages of a strategic investor with the process knowledge of financial investors. The company is financed by the entrepreneurial capital of well-known family businesses and entrepreneurs and invests long-term without pressure to exit. Equity is only invested directly in medium-sized companies with a focus on special situations like corporate carve-outs.
