Press Release Amplio Filtration Group

Total value of the investment: € 16 million.

 

Milan, 31st October 2011 – Ambienta SGR has finalized an agreement through Ambienta I, the largest European private equity fund specialised in the environmental sector, to invest in Amplio Filtration Group, an international Group active in water treatment and process filtration.

The total investment amounts to € 16 million, almost exclusively through a capital increase, for a minority interest in the group.

Amplio Filtration Group was founded in mid 2009 by the holding company Amplio Partners, a London based investment company run by two serial entrepreneurs, Riccardo Segat and Andrea Davi, with the aim of consolidating the fragmented water treatment and filtration process sector.

To date, Amplio Filtration has acquired four companies across three geographies. The Group includes: the US-based Envirogen Technology Inc (systems and services for the treatment of potable water, groundwater and wastewater) which was the first company to be incorporated, followed by UK-based Puresep Filtration Technologies Ltd and Environmental Water Systems (services and systems for process filtration) and most recently Italy-based Fluxa Filtri SpA (distributor of filters and consumables for a wide range of applications). Amplio Filtration is currently delivering double digit growth and revenues of € 35 million expected for 2011.

Ambienta’s investment will help to accelerate Amplio Filtration’s strategy in fostering cross-sell technologies and expertise among Group’s companies in order to strengthen growth and deliver an enlarged global footprint, also by means of acquisitions in selected niche markets, and to grow it into a € 100 million revenues water management company by 2014.

Ambienta will support Amplio Filtration Group in selecting the most valuable targets for its buy and build strategy, also leveraging on its network of industrial relations in Italy and abroad.

The growth perspectives of the whole water filtration industry – a $45 billion global market growing at 6-7% per annum- are supported by solid fundamentals and long-term trends such as a shortage of water resources to serve the growing world population and production activities, the stricter implementation of existing environmental legislation and the continued sophistication of filtering systems used in industrial processes.

Going forward, the strategy will consist in consolidating the Group leadership in selected niche markets – including the decontamination of selenium in wastewater from mining, the removal of nitrates from groundwater, filtering systems used in the food and beverage, healthcare and oil and gas industries – further expanding Amplio Filtration’s cross-selling opportunities, through its vast client base and the geographic diversification of the business, both in Europe and in the US.

The project promoted by Andrea Davi and Riccardo Segat has attracted well-regarded industry executives who have brought experience from the leading players in the market. Among these executives, Mike Stark – CEO of Envirogen – former President of Veolia Water North America and one of the leading experts in the sector, was one of the first to support the strategy. Stark’s move to Amplio Filtration was closely followed by Vince Payne, another high profile figure in the sector, who after managerial roles at US Filters in UK, founded Puresep and now heads up the UK arm of Amplio Filtration.

“This agreement with Ambienta further strengthens Amplio Filtration’s position in the attractive global water market. It allows us to accelerate Amplio Filtration’s growth via acquisitions and organically through cross-selling our technologies and expertise across the business. We are confident that we can continue to expand Amplio Filtration’s European and US footprint and achieve revenues of € 100 million by 2014.” Andrea Davi, a partner of Amplio Partners, commented.

“Ambienta’s investment marks an important step in Amplio Group’s successful growth story, as we continue to consolidate our operational and financial capabilities in the environmental services sector as a whole. Amplio Group’s strategic focus over the next five years will remain renewable energy and water treatment, which complements Ambienta’s commitment to these sectors globally” says Riccardo Segat, CEO of Amplio Partners.

“Over the last three years we have looked at a number of investment opportunities in the sector without finding the right balance of leadership capability, strategic focus and geographic mix. Amplio Filtration offers all these characteristics. Over the next three years, Ambienta will work with management on identifying and acquiring complementary businesses with the objective of creating a strategic player on the market”, Mauro Roversi, partner of Ambienta SGR, commented.

The deal was managed by Mauro Roversi and Laura Della Chiara, respectively partner and associate of Ambienta SGR. Latham&Watkins acted as legal counsel, CBA Studio Legale e Tributario covered the tax and structuring aspects, PWC carried out the financial due diligence.
Amplio Partners was assisted by the law firm Macchi di Cellere Gangemi and by Tax & Finance for tax aspects.

Amplio Filtration Group is an international group focused on water treatment and industrial filtration for various sectors including mining, oil and gas, food and beverage and healthcare. Amplio Filtration Group is a subsidiary of Amplio Group, an industrial holding company founded by Riccardo Segat and Andrea Davi- Amplio Group is a leading international operator and investor focusing on investments with high growth potential in renewable energy, alternative fuels, filtration, recycling and environmental services, employing 150 people in the U.S., United Kingdom and Italy.

Ambienta SGR, authorized by the Bank of Italy on 5 November 2007, is the only Italian asset management firm created exclusively to manage environment-friendly investments. Four partners are responsible for investment choices and fund management: Rolando Polli, founding partner with CEO Nino Tronchetti Provera, Guido Rivolta and Mauro Roversi. Ambienta SGR is 70% owned by its management team, 20% by the Intesa SanPaolo group, and the remaining 10% by a group of Italian entrepreneurs. In addition to the four partners, the Board also includes Antonio Segni as Chairman, Carla Ferrari representing Intesa SanPaolo, and Carlo Pesenti representing the group of entrepreneurs.