French chemicals and pharmaceuticals groups Novacap and PCAS have started negotiations for a potential merger. Novacap said a combination of the two businesses would create a global leader in the pharmaceutical synthesis and fine specialty chemicals industry, enabling PCAS to bolster its ambitious development strategy. PCAS would join Novacap as a stand-alone and autonomous company.

Vincent Touraille, CEO of PCAS, said there was a strong fit between the two groups which shared the same industrial culture. “With the support of Novacap, PCAS would be able to speed up its transformation implemented over the last three years and accelerate its growth for the future,” he said.

Novacap has agreed with Eximium, PCAS’s main shareholder, to acquire around 29.5% of its share capital at a price of €17 per share. At the same time, the Lyon-based group has made the same offer to PCAS’ chairman, Christian Moretti, and certain other shareholders, which would give it more than the 50% shareholding it needs for the deal to go ahead. This latter group has granted Novacap an exclusive negotiation period until Dec. 31, 2017.

The acquisition would be funded by a mix of debt and new equity from Novacap’s main shareholders, namely Eurazeo, Ardian and Merieux Developpement. It was widely reported in March 2016 that Ardian had started talks with Eurazeo and Merieux Developpement to sell its majority stake in Novacap but a deal appears not to have been struck.