A single bid was presented Wednesday in the Dijon Commercial Court for the acquisition of Metalliance, a company specializing in tunnel boring machines and decarbonized vehicles.
The Franco-American consortium behind the bid has committed to retaining 145 of the 174 employees based in Saint-Vallier (Saône-et-Loire).
“We Have All the Tools to Succeed”
“We have everything we need to make a fresh start,” Steve Filipov, the representative of the Franco-American offer, told AFP.
The consortium, operating under the holding company Corail-SM, a French subsidiary of the American fund Coral Reef, includes another American fund, Sandton Capital, along with two industrial players: the French company Novium (specializing in railway maintenance equipment) and the American company Mining Equipment.
Investment and Revival Plan
“We are acquiring the assets and inventory for €1 million and investing an additional €9 million to restart production,” explained Mr. Filipov, a French-American who has led several French companies, including Gaussin, the former parent company of Metalliance.
The buyer, who intends to retain 145 of the 174 employees, aims to “return to profitability by the second quarter of 2025,” starting by fulfilling the €50 million in existing orders.
Overcoming Challenges
Metalliance was contracted to assemble over 300 logistics vehicles ordered by Amazon from its former parent company Gaussin, a group also facing difficulties that is divesting Metalliance after being acquired by the Czech company CSG.
However, Metalliance was only able to partially fulfill this order due to its limited capacity in relation to the contract’s size.
Future Focus on Decarbonized Vehicles and Tunnel Boring Machines
In the long term, the buyer proposes to expand the decarbonized vehicle business alongside the production of tunnel boring machines.
To achieve this, they have partnered with the French company Blyyd, a Lyon-based manufacturer of electric yard tractors. Blyyd was previously the distributor of these products for Gaussin.
Independence from Gaussin
“We can operate independently of Gaussin now. We have ten years of experience,” Blyyd’s president, Damien Gambey, assured AFP.
Opposition and Concerns
The Gaussin Group opposes this offer, describing it in a stock exchange release as a “misappropriation or diversion of Gaussin’s know-how.”
Consequently, Gaussin is requesting that the sale of Metalliance exclude the inventory of parts, which Gaussin proposes to repurchase for €3 million.
“They want to steal our business and then move it abroad,” stated Nathalie Pélissard, employee representative at Gaussin’s Works Council. “We have the expertise, not them,” she asserted, protesting in front of the court with about fifty of the 74 employees from Gaussin, based in Héricourt (Haute-Saône).