The Domžale-based Helios reported that its current owners Ring International Holding, Franklin Templeton and GSO, made a deal with the Japanese Kansai Paint for the purchase of a 100 percent stake of the company.

According to the Finance daily, Kansai Paint paid 572 million euros to buy Helios. The Austrian holding company Ring International bought Helios three years ago for 145 million euros, and later merged it with its Austrian coatings company Rembrandtin.
Helios informs that the transfer of shares will be completed in two to three months, once the transaction is approved by competition protection authorities. Helios is to become the European centre for Kansai Paint.

"I’m happy and proud to have a new strategic owner, the Kansai Paint company, which is one of the ten best companies in the coatings industry. Kansai Paint will present a new development platform for Helios. Helios will come a European centre for R & D, innovation and business development. That means that in the future we will continue to introduce new products. Apart from that we will also be able to enter new markets, like the Asian and African markets, where Kansai Paint has a strong presence," is what David Kubala, one of the two CEO’s of the Helios Group, had to say after signing the deal.

The head of Kansai Paint, Hiroshi Ishino, announced that their wish was to develop Helios into a powerful European centre for innovation, with the best knowledge and expert skills in various coating segments. "We are pleased to have found a company like Helios, with a good business philosophy and excellent potential, which can become even more significant in Europe in the field of coatings," said Mr. Ishino.

The biggest Japanese paint manufacturer
Kansai Paint is the biggest and most progressive manufacturer of decorative, automotive, industrial, protective and marine coatings in Japan. It has 93 subsidiaries and 29 associated companies, employing almost 12,500 people. It generates around 2.632 billion euros in sales.

G. C.; translated by K. J.