Nobia sells window division- Svenska Fönster now Danish

Nobia sells window division - Svenska Fönster now Danish Two Danish companies, VELCAP A/S and Axcel IndustriInvestor a.s., have signed an agreement to acquire Svenska Fönster from Nobia. Svenska Fönster is Sweden's next-largest window manufacturer. VELCAP and Axcel already own Rationel Vinduer, Denmark's largest window manufacturer. Svenska Fönster and Rationel Vinduer have a combined turnover of SEK 850 million. Nobia Nordisk Bygginteriör have signed an agreement with a Danish consortium consisting of VELCAP (51%) and Axcel IndustriInvestor (49%) to sell Svenska Fönster as of 1 January 2000. The deal hinges on the approval of the Swedish Competition Authority. The contract does not include BorDörren. Axcel and VELCAP's investments in the window industry are on a joint-venture basis. Background "We have been monitoring the Swedish window market intensely for a long time," says Director Lars Bugge at VELCAP, "and we see Svenska Fönster as a highly interesting business with a strong market position. Entering the Swedish market this way is a natural step for VELCAP." "Svenska Fönster is a business with strong management on an expanding market," says Director Christian Frigast at Axcel. "We hope to benefit from Svenska Fönster's strong position on the Swedish window market and the significant projected market growth. Hopefully our collective expertise will contribute positively to the company's growth." The aim is to keep Svenska Fönster and Rationel Vinduer as independent units. "We are talking about two independent units with unique skills," say Frigast and Bugge. "They can learn from each other, and we plan to use that." Two trademarks Svenska Fönster has two trademarks: SP Fönster and Traryd Fönster. The enterprise has a staff of 400 (not including BorDörren). It has two factories in Sweden: in Edsbyn 300 km north of Stockholm and in Traryd in Småland province. In 1999 Svenska Fönster (not including BorDörren) turned over SEK 387 million and showed a profit of SEK 22 million before taxes. During the same period, the entire Swedish window market turned over about SEK 1.5 billion, after a growth of 12%. The strong growth is expected to continue in the coming years. "Gaining an industrial owner whose core industry is windows opens a lot of opportunities for Svenska Fönster," says Olle Sigurdson, manager at Svenska Fönster. "We will have access to wide-ranging expertise in many areas, which will further strengthen our position on the Swedish market." "We're very pleased with the deal," says Fredrik Cappelen, Managing Director at Nobia. "VELCAP is the best possible owner to take our window business to even higher levels. Kitchens are the core of Nobia's business. By taking over the Poggenpohl group and Norema, we have created a strong European kitchens group. Now we can invest all our strength into expanding our already strong position on the European kitchens market." For more information, contact: ¤ Lars Bugge, MD VELCAP, tel. +45 45 16 40 33 ¤ Christian Frigast, MD Axcel IndustriInvestor, tel. +45 333 66 999 ¤ Olle Sigurdson, MD Svenska Fönster, tel. +46 271 29 000, 0705-16 90 50 ¤ Fredrik Cappelen, MD Nobia, tel. +46 31 705 53 50, +46 705- 67 08 00 ¤ Peter Petersson, Nobia, tel. +46 31 703 53 53, +46 705-84 43 55 About VELCAP A/S and the VELUX Group Velcap is a company in the VELUX Group that invests in and develops business areas and technologies related to the VELUX Group's current focus. The VELUX Group develops, produces and markets products that provide daylight, fresh air and views in buildings. The group includes VELUX skylights and VELFAC facade windows. The VELUX Group employs 6,000 people in 40 countries. About Axcel IndustriInvestor Axcel IndustriInvestor a.s. is a Danish industrial investment company that actively invests in competitive medium-sized and large industrial companies with a sound business concept and potential for growth and development. The company is owned by ATP, De Nationale Investeringsbank, FIH, Investeringsselskabet of 30/04/1992 (Radiometer), Kirkbi, PKA, and Unibank. The company is connected to several Danish companies, including Icopal, Aalborg Industries and Kansas Wenaas. About Nobia and Svenska Fönster Svenska Fönster is part of Nobia AB, Europe's largest kitchens group with a turnover of about SEK 6.2 billion and a staff of 5,100. Nobia's brands include Marbodal, HTH, Uno form, Sigdal, Star Beka, Petra, Parma and À la Carte. The Poggenpohl group includes not only Poggenpohl, but also three German kitchen companies: Pronorm, OPTIFIT and Goldreif, and Myresjökök (Sweden) and WFM (Poland). Norema Kök has the brands Norema and Invita. Other brands are SP Fönster, Traryd Fönster and BorDörren. The group also includes construction material wholesaler Star Byggprodukter AB. The products are manufactured in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Germany and Poland. The main office is located in Göteborg. Nobia is owned by the IndustriKapital 1994 fund, by the company management and Skanska AB, with an ownership of just over 21%, and Norema ASA with about 11% ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by BIT http://www.bit.se The following files are available for download: http://www.bit.se/bitonline/2000/08/28/20000828BIT00950/bit0001.doc http://www.bit.se/bitonline/2000/08/28/20000828BIT00950/bit0002.pdf