Mersen, electrical specialties and graphite-based materials, has announced its signing of an agreement to acquire ASP, a Chinese leader specialized in overvoltage protection (surge protection devices).
According to Mersen, the deal is part of a strategy to expand the presence of Mersen's electrical segment in the overvoltage protection market. Mersen's goal is to achieve close to €40 million of sales in this segment by 2018. This deal follows the acquisition of a majority stake in Cirprotec (Spain) in February 2014, which provided the Group with a strong expertise in IEC standards.
Mersen will now build on the recognized ASP brand in China and an efficient industrial platform to roll out across the Asian region which is currently adopting predominantly a technology already deployed in Europe.
ASP has been majority owned by a Taiwanese group (CIMIC) since 2009. The company has a sales network covering the whole China territory and a manufacturing facility in Guangzhou.
The deal is scheduled to be completed by September, following approval by the Chinese authorities.
