CRH sells Oldcastle Building Envelope in $3.8bn deal

Building materials firm CRH has agreed to sell its Oldcastle Building Envelope unit in a $3.8bn deal.

The business, a specialist in glass building products, is being acquired by New York-based private equity firm KPS Capital Partners. Based in Dallas, Texas, OBE’s biggest market is North America.

The deal consists of $3.45bn in cash and a transfer of lease liabilities of $0.35bn.

OBE, which employs more than 6,700 people, generated around $337m in annual earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation in 2020. As at 30 June 2021, gross assets were $2.5bn.

The sale process, which was started last year, is understood to have attracted a number of suitors.

In a statement, Dublin-based CRH - one of the world’s largest building materials companies - said: "The decision to divest at an attractive valuation follows a comprehensive review of the business and demonstrates CRH’s active approach to portfolio management, the efficient allocation of capital and the creation of a simpler and more focused group."

Proceeds from the sale will be incorporated into the group’s capital allocation resources.

Raquel Vargas Palmer, co-managing partner at KPS, said: "OBE is the one-stop-shop for every critical product a glazing industry customer needs, and the company serves attractive, growing end-markets. We intend to drive profitable growth by providing the company with the financial resources to invest in commercial and operational excellence."

As at 0930 GMT, CRH’s London-listed shares were down 3% at 3,268.0p.

CRH is due to publish full-year results on Thursday.