By Arno Schuetze and Ludwig Burger
FRANKFURT, July 25 (Reuters) - Chemicals groups Umicore and Sinochem are among the groupsinterested in German surface finishing and metal plating companyAtotech, put on the block by France's oil giant Total,people close to the matter said.
Total has asked for preliminary bids for the unit, which isexpected to fetch more than 3 billion euros ($3.3 billion), by aTuesday deadline, the sources added.
Arkema - a former Total subsidiary - and BASF have looked at Atotech but are seen as unlikelybidders, while buyout groups such as CVC,Cinven, BC Partners, Advent, Bain andCarlyle are expected to present offers.
The potential bidders declined to comment or were notimmediately available to comment.
Total hired Barclays in June to organise the saleof Berlin-based Atotech, which generates annual sales of about$1 billion from the manufacture of speciality chemicals andequipment for printed circuit boards and semiconductors.
The industrial specialty chemicals sector has seen a numberof mergers and acquisitions recently as buyers pay rich premiumsfor high margin business to offset sluggish growth in theirestablished markets.
Germany's Evonik bagged the specialty and coatingadditives operations of U.S. industrial gas producer AirProducts and Chemicals for $3.8 billion or more than 15times expected 2016 earnings before interest, taxes,depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA).
Germany's BASF, the world's largest chemical producer,agreed to buy Albemarle Corp's surface-treatment unitChemetall for $3.2 billion, also an earnings multiple of morethan 15.
People familiar with the company have said they expectAtotech to generate EBITDA of 250 million euros this year andthat Total has told potential bidders it would accept no offersbelow 12 times that in a sale.
Total hopes to fetch a similar multiple as the 13.9 timescore earnings that U.S. peer Platform paid for itsacquisition of Alent last year.
Atotech is Total's sole remaining speciality chemicals unitafter the sale of Bostik to Arkema in 2014.
($1 = 0.9110 euros) (Editing by Maria Sheahan)
Barclays (BARC)
