By Kane Wu and Yantoultra Ngui
HONG KONG/SINGAPORE (Reuters) -KKR & Co is set to launch the sale of Singapore-based Goodpack in a deal that could value the provider of shipping containers and logistics services at around $1.8 billion, people with knowledge of the matter said.
The private equity giant has hired Deutsche Bank and Rippledot to advise on the sale and a formal process will begin in the coming weeks, the people said, declining to be identified as the information was not public.
The seller has started sounding out selected parties including global strategic and financial investors to gauge potential interest in the deal, two of the people said.
KKR has decided to put Goodpack up for sale four years after its first such attempt, which failed to materialise as the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted business and hit valuations.
Goodpack's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) is projected to be about $120 million to $130 million, with a sale aiming to fetch a multiple of up to 15 times that, said one of the people.
KKR and Deutsche Bank declined to comment. Goodpack said it does not comment on KKR's business. Rippledot did not respond to requests for comment.
KKR acquired Goodpack, which was established in 1980, for about S$1.4 billion ($985 million) in 2014 and delisted it from Singapore Exchange (OTC:SPXCY).
Goodpack then changed senior management, expanded into new markets such as food and chemicals, and set up offices in Europe and the United States.
The company provides services to customers in rubber, chemicals, automotive, food products and other industries, its website showed.
It operates a fleet of four million-plus pallet-sized containers across over 5,000 delivery and collection points worldwide.