Bahrain-based private equity firm First Equity Partners (FEP) has led a consortium of strategic partners to acquire 50 per cent of Fujairah-based building materials producer Oryx Industries for US$136mn
Other members of the consortium include Qatar?s State Holding, Saudi Arabia?s Rawabi Holding, Kuwait?s Al Waab Real Estate and Sheikh Abdulla Al Dhaarqi, chairman of Oryx Industries.
Over the next few months, the stakes would be raised by bringing on board more investors, stated an official from FEP.
Qais Al Maskati, managing director of FEP, said, ?FEP is proud to play an integral role in the future of Oryx Industries ? a uniquely positioned organisation that is set to benefit from the increasing demand for basic building materials in the construction sector. As a regional industry leader in the areas of aggregate production, trading and bulk transport and logistic services, Oryx Industries is expected to play a vital role in many of the large-scale GCC real estate and infrastructure projects in the coming years.?
Maskati added that the acquisition was ?a timely investment with strong up-side potential?.
Osman Ibrahim, group president of Rawabi Holding, said, ?We are excited to be part of this consortium and look forward to working with FEP and the other strategic partners to realise the full potential of this opportunity. The Gulf region witnessed unprecedented levels of growth supported by the high level of government spending, which had a positive impact on construction related sectors and the companies operating in this field.?
Company officials stated that Fujairah-based Oryx Industries has delivered strong growth numbers in the recent past, and capitalised on the GCC?s ongoing construction boom by investing in Dubai World Expo 2020 and the Qatar World Cup 2022.
