French firm Sagard to sell warehouse logistics operator CEPL to Arcapita

CEPL's management, led by Thierry Ortmans, CEO and founder of the company, and Akim Lamrani, COO, will continue in their current roles. They have increased their equity investment in the business, according to a statement.

Financial details were not officially disclosed but sources close to the deal said that the enterprise value was in excess of €500m. CEPL, founded in 1998, has approximately 2,200 employees and operates across 23 sites in France and Germany.

Sagard I, the €600m fund closed in December 2003, acquired CEPL in 2005. Sagard I was fully invested in July 2006, according to the firm's website.

Mounzer Nasr, head of Arcapita's European corporate investments, said, 'Arcapita currently owns more than five million square metres of industrial warehouse facilities globally, and the acquisition of CEPL has the potential for significant synergies with our existing portfolio of logistics investments.'

Arcapita recently added Pinnacle, an industrial warehouse developer and operator in CEE, to its industrial warehouse portfolio.

Sagard closed its second fund, Sagard II, in December 2006 on €1.01bn.

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