Key Takeaways
- • AfricInvest Europe's French-African Fund 3 (FFA 3) has made its second investment, in ACC M, a French specialist in refurbishing and heavy maintenance of railway rolling stock.
- • FFA 3 invests alongside majority shareholder LBO France, the Fonds Souverain Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (managed by Siparex Territoires), and CACF Développement.
- • The deal funds ACC M's next growth phase, including international expansion particularly into Africa, and introduces an employee share ownership plan for all eligible staff.
- • Chairman Thierry Cézard and TTH Group founder Thierry Torti are reinvesting significantly alongside key management.
- • AfricInvest Europe is the French subsidiary of the AfricInvest Group, a private equity platform founded in 1994 that manages $2.5 billion in assets.
Summary
AfricInvest Europe's French-African Fund 3 (FFA 3) has made its second investment, in ACC M, a French specialist in the refurbishment and heavy maintenance of railway rolling stock, according to Africa Private Equity News. FFA 3 is investing alongside majority shareholder LBO France, a Paris-based private equity firm, as well as the Fonds Souverain Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, managed by Siparex Territoires, and CACF Développement. The investment is intended to support ACC M's next phase of growth, including its international expansion, particularly in Africa.
Founded in 1919, ACC M specialises in mid-life refurbishment, upgrading trains, metros and trams after roughly 20 years in service to extend their useful life to around 40 years. The company manages the full process, from diagnostics to return to service, for both urban and mainline rolling stock. Thierry Cézard, chairman of ACC M, and Thierry Torti, founder of TTH Group, are also reinvesting significantly alongside key members of the management team. The transaction provides for an employee share ownership plan that will allow all eligible employees to become shareholders.
Through FFA 3, AfricInvest Europe will help ACC M explore opportunities in Africa, drawing on the AfricInvest Group's local presence and networks. Stéphane Colin and Khaled Ben Jennet, managing partners of AfricInvest Europe, cited the group's eight offices in Africa (Algeria, Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt, Mauritius, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria and Tunisia) and identified mid-life refurbishment needs for metros and trams built by French manufacturers, including Citadis trams, as well as trams operated by French companies known to ACC M. The investment aligns with the French-African Funds' strategy, which since 2017 has backed 21 French small and medium-sized enterprises with existing or prospective development projects in Africa.
AfricInvest Europe is the French subsidiary of the AfricInvest Group, a private equity platform founded in 1994 that manages $2.5 billion in assets.
Founded in 1919, ACC M specialises in mid-life refurbishment, upgrading trains, metros and trams after roughly 20 years in service to extend their useful life to around 40 years. The company manages the full process, from diagnostics to return to service, for both urban and mainline rolling stock. Thierry Cézard, chairman of ACC M, and Thierry Torti, founder of TTH Group, are also reinvesting significantly alongside key members of the management team. The transaction provides for an employee share ownership plan that will allow all eligible employees to become shareholders.
Through FFA 3, AfricInvest Europe will help ACC M explore opportunities in Africa, drawing on the AfricInvest Group's local presence and networks. Stéphane Colin and Khaled Ben Jennet, managing partners of AfricInvest Europe, cited the group's eight offices in Africa (Algeria, Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt, Mauritius, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria and Tunisia) and identified mid-life refurbishment needs for metros and trams built by French manufacturers, including Citadis trams, as well as trams operated by French companies known to ACC M. The investment aligns with the French-African Funds' strategy, which since 2017 has backed 21 French small and medium-sized enterprises with existing or prospective development projects in Africa.
AfricInvest Europe is the French subsidiary of the AfricInvest Group, a private equity platform founded in 1994 that manages $2.5 billion in assets.
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