News Article 2021

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October 21 2021, David R Brown

Azelis strengthens its footprint in Africa through the acquisition of Umongo

Azelis, a leading global innovation service provider in the specialty chemicals and food ingredients industry, is to acquire of Umongo, a market-leading lubricants and metal working fluids distributor, based in South Africa. Azelis will acquire 90% of the shares of Umongo, which is majority owned by Omnia Group.

The acquisition of Umongo is another demonstration of our commitment to strengthen our lateral value chain, as well our footprint in Africa

Dr. Hans Joachim Müller
Chief Executive Officer of Azelis Group

The acquisition of Umongo strengthens the Azelis Group's foothold in industrial specialty chemicals in South Africa and the rest of the region and reinforces the Group's lateral value chain by expanding its product offering for the lubricants and metal working fluid market areas.

Established in 2005, Umongo has grown to become a major supplier and service provider to the lubricant industry across Sub-Saharan Africa, providing technical support and innovative solutions through their application laboratory. Headquartered in Durban, South Africa, Umongo's 35 employees serve customers ranging from large multinationals and strong local players to smaller companies. Boston Moonsamy, CEO of Umongo will remain with the company and continue to lead the business.

Dr. Hans Joachim Müller, Azelis Chief Executive Officer,commented: “The acquisition of Umongo is another demonstration of our commitment to strengthen our lateral value chain, as well our footprint in Africa. The addition of Umongo's product offering and competencies reinforce our compelling value proposition to customers and principals.”

Seelan Gobalsamy, Group CEO of Omnia, added: “As a large international player, Azelis will provide the right strategic direction allowing Umongo to continue to flourish. I would like to thank all Umongo's employees, principals, customers and other stakeholders and wish them all the very best going forward.”

The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter pending fulfilment of customary closing conditions. The Omnia Group still retains a significant presence in the broader chemicals distribution market in South Africa through its ownership of Protea Chemicals, one of the largest chemical distributors in Africa.

About Azelis
Azelis is a leading distributor of speciality chemicals and food ingredients present in over 50 countries across the globe with around 2,500 employees. Our knowledgeable teams of industry, market and technical experts are each dedicated to a specific market within Life Sciences and Industrial Chemicals. We offer a lateral value chain of complementary products to more than 45,000 customers, supported by ~2,200 principal relationships, creating a turnover of €2.22 billion (2020).

Across our extensive network of more than 60 application laboratories, our award-winning technical staff help customers develop formulations. We combine a global reach with a local focus to offer a reliable, integrated service to local customers and attractive business opportunities to principals. EcoVadis Platinum rated, Azelis is a leader in sustainability. We believe in building and nurturing solid, honest and transparent relationships with our people and partners.

Source(s): Azelis Press Release

Further Information

Visit: https://www.azelis.com