Verdant Specialty Solutions, a global specialty chemical company, has acquired DeForest Enterprises and ParaFlow Energy Solutions from Chemical Services Group, a privately-owned US chemicals company.

Through these acquisitions, Verdant’s portfolio of surfactants and specialty solutions for industrial, institutional and consumer segments expands.

DeForest Enterprises is a specialty surfactants company with a range of chemistries including low foam wetting agents, alkaline and acid stable surfactants, chlorine and peroxide stable surfactants, high and low foam amphoteric surfactants, hydrotropes, water-soluble corrosion inhibitors and phosphate esters.

ParaFlow Energy Solutions provides unique products applicable to paraffin mitigation in upstream crude oil production and technologies for use in demulsifier applications to assist in solids and iron drop-out, as well as for the separation and recovery of valuable hydrocarbons from refinery slop oil and crude oil storage tank bottoms.

Together, DeForest and ParaFlow serve more than 100 customers in markets including industrial and institutional cleaning, metalworking and metal finishing, oilfield, pigments and inks, construction, and auto care.

Both companies are based in Boca Raton, Florida, and led by President Jeff Edwards. Edwards will join Verdant as Project Director and a member of the management team. He will be responsible for the integration of DeForest and ParaFlow.

“This is an exciting new chapter that will deliver real value to our customers through an expanded portfolio of surfactants and specialty solutions, and through Verdant’s robust global technology and manufacturing platforms,” said Edwards.

Verdant CEO, John Foley said, “These two acquisitions expand our portfolio of surfactants so that we can help customers across a broader range of markets find creative solutions and capitalize on new opportunities. This announcement today is another step toward our vision, and we look forward to coming back with more exciting news in the coming months.”

Verdant is a portfolio company of OpenGate Capital, a global private equity firm. OpenGate acquired Solvay’s secondary surfactants business on April 30th, 2021, and the business was immediately renamed Verdant Specialty Solutions. This business has a long and highly regarded tradition of surfactant innovation and technical service going back to its origins as McIntyre Group in the 1970s. 

The acquisition of DeForest and ParaFlow marks an important first step of Verdant’s strategy to accelerate growth through accretive acquisitions in existing and adjacent technologies and markets.