Glatfelter – which is celebrating its 150th anniversary in 2014 – has acquired Spezialpapierfabrik Oberschmitten GmbH (SPO) from FINSPO Beteiligungs-GmbH, for €8.5 million.
SPO’s plant is located near Frankfurt, Germany and its products include highly technical papers for a wide range of capacitors used in consumer and industrial products, insulation papers for cables and transformers and materials for industrial power inverters, electromagnetic current filters and electric rail traction.
SPO also produces glassine products, which are used in cosmetics packaging, food packaging, and pharmaceutical dosage bags.
The acquisition of SPO broadens Glatfelter’s existing product lines for the electrical market and complements the company’s previously-announced partnership with Dreamweaver International to develop and manufacture lithium-ion battery separators, which employ advanced nonwovens.
“This acquisition will further our Composite Fibers business unit’s strategy of capitalizing on the fast-growing electrical market by expanding our electrical papers product platform,” said Glatfelter chairman and CEO Dante C. Parrini.