HOUSTON — Ara Partners ("Ara") has announced the acquisition of Genera Energy Inc. ("Genera" or the "Company"), a non-wood agricultural pulp and molded fiber products company. The firm also committed additional funding to support significant expansion of its sustainable pulp and packaging business. Legacy FocalPoint Partners, now B. Riley Securities ("B. Riley"), served as advisor to Ara on the acquisition and related debt restructuring of Genera.
The Company's Vonore, Tennessee production facility is the largest vertically-integrated non-wood agricultural pulp and molded fiber manufacturing facility in North America today, supplying customers with domestically sourced and manufactured non-wood pulp and molded fiber products. Investment proceeds will be used to develop additional integrated manufacturing facilities and expand molded fiber production capacity, enabling production of over five million food and consumer packaging products daily. Ara and Genera management will expand the Company's production footprint nationwide to address the growing demand for domestically sourced sustainable packaging. By partnering with American farmers to supply purpose-grown agricultural fibers, the Company creates economic opportunities for rural communities while providing a solution to the growing global plastic pollution problem.
"There is an urgent need for solutions to the mounting global single-use plastics pollution problem that is driving insatiable demand for domestically sourced molded fiber products," said Kelly Tiller, Genera's CEO. "We are proud to partner with Ara and appreciate their passionate support of our mission and their wealth of experience in scaling manufacturing operations and building sustainable businesses." Troy Thacker, Ara Managing Partner added, "The Genera team has the operational experience, strategic relationships, and drive to build the leading sustainable packaging platform in North America. We have been incredibly impressed with the team's depth of knowledge in biomass and molded fiber, as well as the immense customer interest it has garnered across foodservice, consumer packaging, and medical applications. We are thrilled to partner with Kelly and her team to drive this next phase of growth."
"This mandate is the latest example of [B. Riley] directly representing investors in distressed situations," said Rich NeJame, Managing Director at B. Riley Securities. "We are thrilled to announce another successful outcome with a private equity client and thank Ara for our partnership in this transaction."
About Ara Partners
Ara Partners is a private equity firm specializing in industrial decarbonization investments. Ara Partners invests in the industrial and manufacturing, chemicals and materials, energy efficiency and green fuels, and food and agriculture sectors, seeking to build businesses that provide significant decarbonization impact. Ara operates from offices in Boston, Massachusetts, Houston, Texas and Dublin, Ireland. To learn more, visit arapartners.com.
About Genera Energy
Genera is a vertically integrated manufacturer of non-wood agricultural pulp and sustainable packaging. The Company operates a non-wood pulp plant and molded fiber manufacturing facility capable of producing 36,000 tons of agricultural pulp annually. To learn more, visit generainc.com.
B. Riley Securities is a leading investment bank that provides a full suite of investment banking, corporate finance, advisory, research, and sales and trading services. Investment banking services include initial, secondary, and follow-on offerings, institutional private placements, merger and acquisition (M&A) advisory, SPACs, corporate restructuring, and recapitalization. The firm is nationally recognized and highly ranked for its proprietary small-cap equity research. B. Riley Securities is a wholly owned subsidiary of B. Riley Financial. For more information, visit brileysecurities.com.
Please contact Managing Director Rich NeJame at 646-343-9847 with any questions about this transaction.