Ontex Group NV, a Belgian developer and producer of care products and solutions, on Monday announced that it has completed the divestment of its business in Pakistan to ASAIA Holding FZ.
The transaction includes Ontex’s plant and business in Pakistan, the company, which manufactures baby care, feminine care, and adult care products, said in a statement.
“I am pleased that we closed this divestment, allowing us to strengthen our focus on our core retail brand and healthcare markets,” Gustavo Calvo Paz, CEO of Ontex, was quoted as saying.
“I would like to thank the team in Pakistan for their contribution to our business. I wish them the very best as they write this new chapter together,” he added.
As per the statement, Ontex’s latest divestment follows the divestment of the Mexican activities in February 2023 and the Algerian activities in April 2024.
The company said the remaining activities for which Ontex is pursuing strategic options are Brazil and Turkey.
Last September, ASAIA Holding FZ entered into a binding agreement to acquire plant and business in Pakistan from Ontex Group NV. Subject to conditions, the transaction was expected to close by end of 2023.
Back then Ontex said that its business in Pakistan was part of the company’s “emerging markets activities, which have been classified as discontinued operations following the strategic decision in 2021 to divest these”.
Facing external challenges including currency devaluation and economic uncertainty several international companies in recent months have sold off their businesses in Pakistan.
In June last year, Shell, one of the world’s largest energy and petrochemical companies, announced to divest completely from Pakistan after the economic crisis in the country severely impacted the earnings of its subsidiary Shell Pakistan Limited (SPL).
SPL posted a loss of Rs4.6 billion in 1QFY23 versus a similar period last year – from a profit after tax of Rs2 billion.
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