Owens Corning (Toledo, OH, US) will acquire the glass non-wovens and fabrics businesses of Ahlstrom (Helsinki, Finland) for $79.5 million. The transaction is anticipated to close in the first half of 2016.

“The planned acquisition of Ahlstrom’s glass non-wovens and fabrics businesses is a winning combination for our customers, our markets, and our employees,” said Arnaud Genis, group president of Owens Corning’s Composite Solutions Business. “This is a highly complementary acquisition that will provide new revenue, technology, talent and access to markets. The addition of these businesses demonstrates Owens Corning’s commitment to capital efficient growth in its composites business, while at the same time creating scale for investments in new technology and capacity to help our customers grow.”

The assets to be acquired by Owens Corning include operations in Karhula and Mikkeli, Finland, and Tver, Russia. Collectively, the facilities employ approximately 260 people and reported 2014 sales of $85 million. The operations in Karhula and Tver produce glass non-wovens, primarily for flooring applications, and the facility in Mikkeli produces fabrics, primarily for the wind energy market.

The addition of the Ahlstrom assets will strengthen Owens Corning’s position in the non-wovens and wind energy, high-modulus glass, and specialty fabrics segments. In doing so, it will also provide a broader, multi-region supply base across Europe, North America, and Russia to serve customers efficiently. The transaction also reflects Owens Corning’s ongoing commitment to growing its downstream composites businesses and is consistent with its investment in the construction of a new glass non-wovens facility in Gastonia, N.C., US, which will begin production in early 2016.