Toray acquires TenCate Advanced Composites

In a bid to increase its business in the aerospace industry, Japanese materials firm Toray Industries Inc. – said to be the world’s largest carbon fibre manufacturer – is acquiring the TenCate Advanced Composites (TCAC) unit of Koninklijke TenCate BV for 930 million euros (US$1.15 billion).

While Toray already has a large number of transactions in the carbon fibre business for aerospace applications, the Tokyo-based company says it was facing the challenge of further technology development in diverse fields including thermoplastic prepreg, in addition to the existing thermoset prepreg and the establishment of a business base to respond to the anticipated expansion in demand in aircraft applications.

Headquartered in the Netherlands, TCAC is a specialist in thermoplastic and thermoset prepreg manufacturing. The company said the deal will secure it access to a source of highly specified carbon fibre, a crucial component to supporting the needs of its customers.”We have a long history of successful cooperation with Toray and are convinced that we can strengthen each other,” TCAC chief operations officer Frank Meurs said in a statement.

The deal is expected to close in the second half of 2018.