Kineco Group, a leading Indian company with diversified business interests across Railways, Defence, Aerospace, Renewable energy and Industrial sectors has acquired Semvac, A/S, Denmark – a marquee brand in the global rail industry known for its sanitary systems. Kineco acquired 100% equity stake in Semvac from Wabtec UK Holdings Ltd. through a group SPV, Kineco TrainTech Pvt. Ltd. in an all-cash transaction.
This acquisition marks a strategic milestone for Kineco’s ‘Global Rail’ brand and provides it with access to Semvac’s established European customer base. Likewise, it provides Semvac a gateway to the rapidly growing Indian rail market.
Founded in 1984 and headquartered in Odense Denmark, Semvac manufactures sanitation systems exclusively for the railway segment. Semvac has an international presence across 100+ projects serving international rail car builders and rail operators such as Alstom, Nedtrain, DB, SNCB and SNCF with an operational base of over 19,000 vacuum toilet systems installed worldwide. With strong capabilities across the product value chain, Semvac possesses a solid base of existing customers for which it supplies and maintains sanitation cabins and systems.
Commenting on this occasion, the Founder of Kineco Group and its Chairman and Managing Director Shekhar Sardessai said: “I am extremely delighted to have closed acquisition of Semvac- a valuable global brand with a product portfolio trusted by rail OEMs worldwide. Ever since the launch of our “Global Rail” brand at INNOTRANS international rail expo in Berlin in 2022, Kineco has been actively exploring opportunities to establish a local presence in European rail market. This acquisition is the first of many milestones planned as a part of our globalisation strategy for the rail business.
With Semvac, we have not only acquired a company with an impressive 40-year pedigree in the rail industry, but also a team of extremely talented professionals with a deep expertise across technology, manufacturing and marketing domains. Kineco’s team will closely work with the Semvac management to further enhance Semvac’s brand positioning, competitiveness and global market reach by combining the strengths of both companies in terms of products, technologies, marketing and manufacturing. I am confident this integration will unlock significant new opportunities and create value for both companies.
I wholeheartedly welcome the Semvac team into the Kineco family and extend my best wishes for a promising future together.”
Expressing satisfaction with this successful outcome, Semvac’s CEO Jan Geertsen, said: “At Semvac, we are happy to have a new owner, who really values our quality brand, products, and most importantly, our highly skilled and innovative employees. There are a vast number of synergies between Semvac and Kineco Global Rail that we are very eager to explore. With Kineco under the entrepreneurial leadership of Mr. Shekhar Sardessai, we now have the agility and power of ambition we need to take Semvac to the next level in Asia, as well as in the rest of the world”
This acquisition is set to bolster Kineco’s expansion strategy blending Semvac’s legacy of innovation and robust global customer base with Kineco’s expertise and access to Indian supply chain and rail customers. This partnership is set to define new industry benchmarks in rail sanitary systems globally.
