SSL seals £18.8m Ukraine deal
CONSUMER healthcare group SSL International, the name behind contraceptive brand Durex, has completed its £18.8m acquisition of a business that distributes condoms and medical products in Ukraine.
The acquisition is part of an £82m deal to give the group a presence in the former Soviet Union.
Its intention to buy Gainbridge Investments (Cyprus), distributor of the Contex condom brand, from a company called CCD Estate was first flagged up in April when SSL invested in another supplier to former Eastern bloc countries.
SSL, which has its European headquarters in Manchester, paid £63m to increase its shareholding from 15.5% to 50% plus one share in BLBV, which distributes condoms and medical products across the Commonwealth of Independent States which include Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan and Russia.
Chief executive Garry Watts said: “We are pleased to have completed the acquisition of Gainbridge in the Ukraine. This is a further step in our expansion into the CIS and Eastern Europe; we remain encouraged and excited about the opportunities that these markets represent.”
Both deals were funded by SLL’s existing facilities, and the group has a further option to buy the remaining shares in BLBV early next year.
In the year to December 2007 BLBV reported revenue of £102.7m with profit before tax of £16.5m, while Gainbridge had a turnover of £16m with profit before tax of £2.24m.
