Mitsubishi Chemical to Acquire German Semiconductor-related Service Company Cleanpart Group

Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation (MCC; Head office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Masayuki Waga) today announced, it reached an agreement with a German investment fund, Deutsche Beteiligungs AG to acquire shares of Cleanpart Group GmbH (Cleanpart; Head office: Asperg, Germany; CEO: Dr. Udo Nothelfer), which has developed semiconductor-related services in Europe and the U.S. All the shares are planned to be turned over by Service Investment S. ar. L, a subsidiary of Deutsche Beteiligungs AG that holds shares of Cleanpart, in October of this year. 

Cleanpart provides semiconductor makers in Europe and the U.S. with precision cleaning and coating services for semiconductor manufacturing equipment, and is one of the leading providers in this field in Europe. Its technological capabilities have also helped Cleanpart establish market-leading position in the U.S. market. MCC’s subsidiary Shinryo Corporation (Shinryo; Head office: Kitakyushu-shi, Fukuoka; President: Toshiro Eto) has developed the similar business, mainly in Japan and other Asian markets.

Growth in the semiconductor market has continued to soar in recent years along with the explosion in data processing volume due to the expansion of information technology such as AI and IoT, and is expected to remain on a path toward favorable growth. The Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Group has designated “IT, electronics, and displays” as one of the focus markets in its medium-term management plan APTSIS 20, and is enhancing fields such as cleaning materials, precision cleaning services and specialty gases for semiconductors in its semiconductor-related business. Cleanpart and Shinryo have a complementary relationship from a geographical standpoint. The acquisition allows MCC to offer its precision cleaning and coating services on a global scale. Furthermore, MCC will enhance the Group’s semiconductor-related business by strengthening access to the semiconductor industry using Cleanpart’s market presence and networks in Europe and the U.S. and boosting its capabilities to propose solutions that meet customers’ needs and help them develop more advanced technology.

MCC continually takes a proactive stance in business development in growth fields, and strives to enhance not only its semiconductor-related business, including information and electronics-related businesses.

Outline of Cleanpart
1. Company name: Cleanpart Group GmbH
2. Head office: Asperg, Germany
3. Establishment: 1998
4. Representative: Dr. Udo Nothelfer (CEO), Timo Seeberger (CFO)
5. Employees: 419 (as of August 1, 2018)
6. Line of business: Precision cleaning and coating of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, analysis, and manufacturing and sales of components