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Private equity groups Advent International and Platinum Equity are vying to buy $2bn worth of assets, including the Kevlar bulletproof brand, from DuPont, as the chemicals giant undergoes a wider break-up.
The rival groups are the frontrunners to secure the protective equipment assets and are expected to submit final-round bids for DuPont’s Kevlar and Nomex this month, according to three people familiar with the matter.
The Delaware-based chemicals maker put the brands up for sale after unveiling plans for a reorganisation that will also involve spinning off its electronics division into a separate listed company by November.
The reorganisation follows those undertaken by Americans brands such as Kellogg and General Electric. DuPont wants to reposition itself as a diversified industrials group focused on materials science and engineering. It ditched a plan to also offload its water division as part of the shift.
The people said that DuPont may still opt to keep Kevlar and Nomex and other bidders could emerge. DuPont, Platinum and Advent declined to comment.
DuPont developed both brands, which are known for synthetic-fibre protective equipment in the 1960s. Nomex is a heat and flame-resistant material used by firefighters, soldiers, and race car drivers. Kevlar is known for its bulletproof vests and body armour.
DuPont announced the break-up plan in 2024 in an bid to exploit a sum of the parts discount and unlock value for shareholders.
The corporate giant was formed by the $130bn megamerger of Dow and DuPont in 2017. Following the merger, DowDuPont broke up into Corteva Agriscience, Dow and DuPont.
DuPont posted strong first-quarter earnings in May, beating analysts’ expectations, but similar to other US manufacturers it faces the threat of trade tensions between Washington and Beijing hurting its shipments to China.
