Japanese chemical recycler JEPLAN is making a public debut on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) through a merger with a blank-check company affiliated with Japan’s first private equity firm Advantage Partners.
The deal will give the Japanese recycler $300 million in equity value and $180 million in cash held in trust in AP Acquisition Corp, the special purpose acquisition company of Advantage Partners, according to a company statement.
The merger will bring up the post-money valuation of the combined company to an estimated equity value of $480 million, assuming that there are no redemptions by AP Acquisition’s public shareholders.
“Going forward, JEPLAN will use this funding to expand the reach of our innovative chemical recycling business to the rest of the world,” said JEPLAN CEO and founder Masaki Takao.
Takao will remain on the executive chair alongside its current management team in Japan, where the company will be headquartered following the merger.
The firm will be renamed JEPLAN Holdings, Inc. It plans to list its common shares in the form of American Depositary Shares (ADSs) and warrants to purchase common shares in the form of ADSs on the NYSE under the ticker symbols “JPL” and “JPL WS,” respectively.
The business combination has been given the go-ahead from the boardrooms of both parties and the deal is expected to close by the fourth quarter of 2023, subject to shareholder approvals and waiver of customary closing conditions.
JEPLAN provides technology for the chemical recycling of plastic bottles or food packaging, which are made of polyethylene terephthalate, with the target of achieving a circular economy where waste products are collected and recycled, rather than washed and melted. The firm operates two recycling plants in Japan, with another facility dedicated to research and development under construction.
Advantage Partners, which focuses on mid-market buyout deals, previously announced the final close of its latest Japan-focused fund at 130 billion yen ($970 million) in April. With a focus on decarbonisation and renewable energy in Japan and non-Greater China Asian countries, its SPAC arm raised $172.5 million in an initial public offering in December 2021.
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