ARNHEM, The Netherlands - Akzo Nobel announced the acquisition of ALTANA Chemie AG's Rhenacoat S.A. coil-coatings business in France. Terms were not disclosed.

The business is part of ALTANA's Coatings & Sealants business unit, and had sales of approximately 11.6 million euros in 2003. The purchase includes coil-coatings production facilities in Montataire, France.

Rudy van der Meer, the member of Akzo Nobel's Board of Management responsible for Coatings, said the acquisition provides the company with a coil-coatings production facility in France, the biggest coil-coatings market in Europe.

ALTANA Chemie, based in Wesel, Germany, said the Rhenacoat sale is part of a strategic realignment of its Coatings & Sealants unit, aimed at exiting the industrial-coatings sector to concentrate on "high-potential niches" such as flexible packaging materials.