Taylor Wessing advises investor group led by Emerald Technology Ventures in sale of filter technology specialist inge watertechnologies AG to BASF

Lawyers Dr. Peter Hellich, Maria Weiers, Dr. Christian Frank, Dr. Michael Dietrich, Dr. Philipp von Hülsen, M. Jur (Oxon.), Dr. Bert Kimpel, Sonja Leutnant

Taylor Wessing advised an investor group of seven companies, led by Emerald Technology Ventures AG, Zurich, in the sale of inge watertechnologies AG to BASF. The group was comprised of Emerald CleanTech Fund I L.P., Siemens Venture Capital GmbH, EF Investments (Luxemburg) S.à.r.l., SPG Private Investments Ltd., BayTech Venture Capital II GmbH & Co. KG, Taprogge Watertech GmbH and Stonefund 2 NV.  

The purchase price is kept confidential by the parties. Closing remains subject to approval by the competition authorities.  

inge watertechnologies AG is one of the world’s leading solution providers in ultrafiltration technology, a method for treating drinking, industrial, waste and sea water using special membranes. The global company is based in the town of Greifenberg near Munich and has about 85 employees.  

For BASF, entering the market of water treatment membranes means to combine membrane technology with chemical know-how. Only 2 years ago BASF significantly expanded its business reach in water treatment chemicals by acquiring Swiss chemical group Ciba.  

Emerald Technology Ventures, based in Zurich, was established in 2000 as one of Europe’s first independent cleantech funds offering recognised expertise in water management and water treatment. Managing partner Gina Domanig about the closing:  

“The sale of inge to BASF is another strong signal of the growing demand for innovative products and technologies in the water industry. It shows how the big international players are positioning themselves in this quickly emerging market. We are confident that the sale of inge to BASF will take the company to a new, successful (growth) stage.“  

Dr. Peter Hellich, Head Corporate / M&A of Taylor Wessing and lead partner in the deal:  

“We are very happy about the contribution we could make together with our in-house colleagues and the company’s lawyers to achieve a smooth and efficient handling of negotiations, in spite of the large number of both institutional and private investors.“