Marcel Dutil family, CDPQ, Fonds de solidarité to re-acquire Canam Group from AIP for $840M

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By Ted Liu

Placements CMI Inc. (Marcel Dutil family), Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) and Fonds de solidarité FTQ have entered into a definitive agreement with the American Industrial Partners (AIP) to acquire all of Canam Group’s Canadian operations, as well as certain assets in the United States and overseas.

The transaction is expected to close in the coming weeks and will total more than C$840 million. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals. Under the terms of the agreement, the new company will now be owned equally by this group of Québec investors.

The operations of US subsidiaries Canam Steel Corporation and FabSouth are not affected by this transaction and remain jointly owned by AIP and the Quebec investor group, under the terms of the transaction completed in 2017.

In July 2017, Canam Group completed a going private transaction led by American Industrial Partners (AIP), valuing the company at an enterprise value of approximately $875 million including the assumption of existing indebtedness.

American Industrial Partner Capital Fund VI, L.P. led entity acquired all of the issued and outstanding shares of Canam Group at a price of $12.30 in cash per share, except for the rollover shares held by Placements CMI Inc., Marcel Dutil, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), Fonds de solidarité, and other management shareholders. The rollover shareholders owned 29.32% of Canam outstanding shares.

photo credit: Canam Group

News Release

Placements CMI (Marcel Dutil family), CDPQ and the Fonds de solidarité FTQ acquire the Canadian operations of Canam Group

ST. GEORGES, QC, Jan. 20, 2020 /CNW Telbec/ – Placements CMI (Marcel Dutil family), Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) and Fonds de solidarité FTQ (the Fonds) have signed a definitive agreement with the American Industrial Partners (AIP) equity firm to acquire all of Canam Group’s Canadian operations, as well as certain assets in the United States and overseas.

The transaction is expected to close in the coming weeks and will total more than C$840 million. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals. Under the terms of the agreement, the new company will now be owned equally by this group of Québec investors.

“With the support of CDPQ and the Fonds, Canam will continue to grow with the same standards of quality and reliability that have made its reputation,” said Marcel Dutil, Chairman of the Board of Canam Group. “We would like to thank AIP for its support and look forward to continuing our partnership in the United States.”

“This transaction will repatriate control of the company to Québec and allow it to continue expanding, guided by its strong entrepreneurial culture,” stated Charles Émond, Executive Vice-President, Québec, Private Equity and Strategic Planning at CDPQ. “We are delighted to continue working with the Dutil family and support Groupe Canam, a partner of over 25 years.”

“With this transaction, Canam Group becomes a wholly Quebec-owned company once again,” said Janie Béïque, Executive Vice-President, Investment, Fonds de solidarité FTQ. We are proud to renew our partnership with the Dutil family so that the great adventure of this Québec manufacturing flagship can continue.”

The new company will bring together the Canam Buildings plants located in St. Gédéon-de-Beauce, Boucherville, Mississauga and Calgary, and the Canam Bridges plants located in Quebec City, Laval and Shawinigan (TecFab). The engineering and drafting offices in Brasov, Romania and Kolkata, India, Stonebridge’s erection operations in South Plainfield, New Jersey, as well as Canam Bridges US’s assets located in Claremont, New Hampshire, will also be part of the new company.

The operations of US subsidiaries Canam Steel Corporation and FabSouth are not affected by this transaction and remain jointly owned by AIP and the Quebec investor group, under the terms of the transaction completed in 2017.

About Canam Group
Canam Group specializes in designing integrated solutions and fabricating customized products for the North American construction industry. The Company takes part in an average of more than 10,000 projects in the fields of buildings and infrastructure. Canam Group operates 25 plants in Canada and the United States, as well as engineering offices in Romania and India. The company has more than 4,900 employees, including just over 2,000 in Canada, 2,400 in the United States, 360 in Romania and 110 in India.

About Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec
Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) is a long-term institutional investor that manages funds primarily for public and parapublic pension and insurance plans. As at June 30, 2019, it held CAD 326.7 billion in net assets. As one of Canada’s leading institutional fund managers, CDPQ invests globally in major financial markets, private equity, infrastructure, real estate and private debt. For more information, visit cdpq.com, follow us on Twitter @LaCDPQ or consult our Facebook or LinkedIn pages.

About the Fonds de solidarité FTQ
The Fonds de solidarité FTQ is a development capital fund that channels the savings of Quebecers into investments. As at November 30, 2019, the organization had $16,7 billion in net assets, and through its current portfolio of investments has helped create and protect over 215,000 jobs. The Fonds is a partner in more than 3,100 companies and has nearly 700,000 shareholder-savers.

Photo provided on request.

SOURCE Groupe Canam

For further information: MARIE-NOËLLE GOULET, Communications Manager, Canam Group inc., 1 877 499-6049 / 418 228-8031; 3921, marie-noelle.goulet@groupecanam.com; YANN LANGLAIS-PLANTE, Advisor, Media Communications and Public Relations, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, +1 514 847-5493, ylanglaisplante@cdpq.com; PATRICK MCQUILKEN, Senior Advisor for Media Relations and Communications, Fonds de solidarité FTQ, +1 514 850-4835, pmcquilken@fondsftq.com