US investment group Carlyle is reportedly examining options to exit Spanish plywood producer Garnica after a difficult period marked by weaker financial performance and mounting pressure around the investment.<\/p>\n
Carlyle has hired investment bank Houlihan Lokey to work on a potential transaction, according to Spanish financial press reports citing sources familiar with the process. One option under consideration is understood to involve combining Garnica with another company in the wood-based panels sector rather than pursuing a straightforward sale.<\/p>\n
Carlyle acquired a majority stake in Grupo Garnica Plywood in late 2022 from Intermediate Capital Group and other shareholders. Members of the Garnica family and management retained minority interests in the business.<\/p>\n
At the time, Garnica employed more than 1,200 people, supplied over 600 customers in more than 50 countries and operated seven production sites across major European poplar and pine regions.<\/p>\n
The acquisition was made through Carlyle Europe Partners V, its \u20ac6.4 billion European private equity fund. Carlyle said its plan was to expand Garnica in higher-value markets, broaden the product portfolio and support further international growth.<\/p>\n
Performance weakened after the acquisition<\/strong><\/p>\n The investment has since developed against a much more difficult backdrop for the European wood-panel and construction sectors.<\/p>\n Publicly available accounts for several Garnica subsidiaries show weaker profitability in 2025 despite sales growth.<\/p>\n At Garnica Plywood Ba\u00f1os de R\u00edo Tob\u00eda, sales increased by about 5% in 2025, while EBIT fell by 6.6%. Debt increased by roughly 4%.<\/p>\n At Garnica Plywood Fuenmayor, revenue rose by almost 8%, but EBIT declined by around 28% and net profit fell by about one-third.<\/p>\n The group's French operations have also shown mixed results. Garnica Troyes recorded a net loss of around \u20ac252,000 in 2025, an improvement from losses of \u20ac645,000 in 2024 and \u20ac730,000 in 2023.<\/p>\n These figures do not represent the consolidated group, but they indicate weaker profitability across parts of Garnica's manufacturing network.<\/p>\n Sale process may involve industrial combination<\/strong><\/p>\n According to Spanish financial press reports, Carlyle is seeking a transaction that could allow it to recover at least part of its original investment after substantial losses on the asset.<\/p>\n The fund reportedly paid more than \u20ac500 million for Garnica and is said to have accumulated losses of around \u20ac200 million on the investment.<\/p>\n Those figures have not been publicly confirmed by Carlyle.<\/p>\n A merger with another industry player is understood to be one of the options being considered. Such a structure could create a larger European plywood platform and potentially generate savings in procurement, manufacturing and distribution.<\/p>\n Carlyle continues to classify Garnica as a current portfolio company.<\/p>\n Pressure builds around Garnica<\/strong><\/p>\n The potential sale comes after a difficult period for Garnica, with weaker profitability reported across several parts of the group.<\/p>\n Higher production costs, softer demand in some end markets and pressure on margins have made it harder for the company to deliver the returns expected when Carlyle acquired the business in 2022.<\/p>\n For Garnica, the challenge has been to maintain pricing and profitability while continuing to operate a large manufacturing network focused on premium poplar and pine plywood.<\/p>\n The reported search for a buyer therefore appears less like a routine private-equity exit and more like an attempt to find a new structure for an investment that has performed below expectations.<\/p>\n Carlyle has not publicly announced a sale process, while Garnica continues to operate normally.<\/p>\n If a transaction proceeds, it could mark a major change in ownership and strategy for the Spanish plywood producer.<\/p>\n Garnica \u2013 production footprint<\/strong><\/p>\n Garnica operates seven production sites, five in Spain and two in France, located close to major European poplar and pine growing regions.<\/p>\n At the time of Carlyle\u2019s acquisition, the company employed more than 1,200 people and supplied more than 600 customers in over 50 countries.<\/p>\n Its Troyes plant in France was designed for annual wood consumption of around 300,000 m\u00b3.<\/p>\n Garnica focuses on premium plywood for construction, refurbishment, furniture and transport applications.<\/p>\n Who is Carlyle?<\/strong><\/p>\n Carlyle is one of the world\u2019s largest private investment groups.<\/p>\n Founded in Washington, DC, in 1987, the company manages around US$485 billion in assets and operates across private equity, credit and investment solutions.<\/p>\n It has more than 2,500 employees across 28 offices worldwide.<\/p>\n Carlyle acquired a majority stake in Garnica through Carlyle Europe Partners V, a \u20ac6.4 billion European private equity fund.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":100179,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5204],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-100178","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n