Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek Advises Chinese Mengtai Group on the Acquisition of the European apt Group
The apt Group is one of the leading company groups in the European aluminum industry. The group manufactures and refines high-quality aluminum profiles at four locations in Germany, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic. With an annual capacity of 6 million m² and a mechanical processing capacity of around 15,000 tons, the apt Group is one of the largest manufacturers in Europe. The group employs around 1,000 people and realizes a turnover of around EUR 250 million. The acquisition resulted from a structured and competitive bidding process that Mengtai Group was able to win as a successful bidder with the support of Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek. The transaction was completed in June 2020. The parties agreed not to disclose the purchase price and further conditions. The Mengtai Group is a family-owned group of companies headquartered in Ordos, Inner Mongolia, China, with over 5,000 employees and a turnover of approximately EUR 2.0 billion (USD 2.2 billion) in 2019. The group is one of the ten largest privately-owned companies in Inner Mongolia and is active in the fields of coal production, electricity generation and district heating as well as the production of primary aluminum. The acquisition of the apt Group will enable the Mengtai Group to further strengthen the aluminum processing capabilities of its growing group of companies. The former shareholders of the apt Group were SEDANT-ROBA Technology GmbH, Mr. Franciscus and Yinglei Wang Holding UG. Dr. Bodo Dehne and Sen Gao are members of the China Desk of Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek and regularly advise Chinese companies on their investments in Germany. Counsel to Inner Mongolia Mengtai Group Co, Ltd. Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek: Dr. Bodo Dehne (Lead, Corporate / M&A), Düsseldorf Sen Gao (Lead, Corporate / M&A), Düsseldorf/Hamburg Boris Dürr (Corporate / M&A), Munich Dirk W. Kolvenbach (Corporate / M&A), Düsseldorf Dr. Kai Bandilla (Corporate / M&A), Hamburg Sarah Radon, LL.M. (Corporate / M&A), Düsseldorf Dr. Christian Appelbaum (Finance), Düsseldorf Marc Baltus Dr. Tobias Woltering (both Energy Law), both Düsseldorf Dr. Anton Horn, Philipp Schröler (both Patent Law), both Düsseldorf Christopher Hexel Dr. Alexander Bork Torsten Groß (all Employment), all Düsseldorf Dr. Peter Vocke Fabian Schmitz (both Real Estate), both Düsseldorf Dr. Georg Jacobs, LL.M. Marcel Maybaum (both Intellectual Property), both Düsseldorf Dr. Philip Kempermann, LL.M. Michael Kuska, LL.M. Alexa Finke, LL.M. (all IT/Data Protection), all Düsseldorf Michael Below (Public Law), Düsseldorf David Loszynski (Insolvency Law), Hamburg Joern Matuszewski, Wolfram Meven (both Tax), both Düsseldorf Dr. Tobias Plath, LL.M. (Insurance Law), Düsseldorf Dr. Ruth Schneider (Antitrust), Munich AKD Benelux Lawyers (Netherlands): Zabdaj Pollen Ward Aerts Ruben Schulpen Inan Akdeniz (all Corporate / M&A) Kocián Šolc Balaštík (Czech Republic): Sasha Stepanova Dagmar Dubecká Jana Guričová Daniel Marian (all Corporate / M&A) Viktor Zelinka (Employment Law) Dana Jacková (Real Estate) Notarization: Notary Dr. Henryk Haibt, Düsseldorf |