Directa Plus buys further 49pc stake in Setcar

(Sharecast News) - Directa Plus announced the acquisition of an additional 48.96% stake in Setcar on Monday, taking its shareholding from 50.99% to 99.95%.

The AIM-traded firm said completion was contingent on a number of factors, including the payment of a total consideration of €1.5m and the approval of certain resolutions by Setcar's shareholders at a meeting in April.

It said it had already made an immediate payment of €0.5m from its existing cash resources, with a further €1m payment due before 30 March.

To ensure financial stability and capitalise on the opportunity, Directa Plus said it was engaged in discussions with Nant Capital, with the aim of securing short-term, non-dilutive financing facilities exclusively for funding the second tranche of the acquisition.

Additional details regarding the financing arrangement would be disclosed in due course.

Setcar, based in Romania, specialises in providing environmental services, particularly in the oil and gas sector.

Since Directa Plus acquired its initial 51% holding in November 2019, Setcar had experienced accelerated commercialisation of its Grafysorber technology, securing significant contracts.

With the acquisition nearing completion, Directa Plus said it would be able to further leverage the potential of its environmental remediation division and enhance returns from the opportunities within the sector.

Financially, Setcar reported IFRS non-audited revenues of €7.66m, EBITDA of €0.35m, and net assets of €2.7m for the year ended 31 December.

"This acquisition represents an exciting opportunity for Directa Plus to take further control of the environmental supply chain and capture maximum value from the commercial offering made possible by our Grafysorber technology," said chief executive officer Giulio Cesareo.

"Setcar is located in Braila, a location with high potential as it is just 10 kilometres from the Ukraine border, on the Danube River."

Cesareo noted that Braila has a river port, and is in a free trade zone.

"We believe Braila will be a gateway to the forthcoming reconstruction of Ukraine and that this acquisition will also accelerate our progress to capture a larger share of the significant global environmental market from a highly strategic area."

At 1338 GMT, shares in Directa Plus were down 1.55% at 19p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.