Shrieve Chemical, a portfolio company of Gemspring Capital, has acquired Carbon Chemicals Group.
In October 2024, Gemspring closed a single-asset continuation fund for Shrieve Chemical which it had acquired in December 2019. The continuation fund, which acquired Shrieve Chemical, was organized with lead investor StepStone Group and included participation from a mix of new and existing investors, along with significant contributions from an affiliate of Gemspring and members of Shrieve’s management team.
Shrieve Chemical is a distributor specializing in industrial chemicals, fluids, and specialty lubricants and operates across four divisions: Chemical Distribution, Specialty Lubricants and Enhancers, Energy Products and Services, and Custom Packaging.
Within its chemical distribution division, Shrieve supplies chemicals and ingredients to a diverse range of industries, including agriculture, energy, food, pharmaceuticals, personal care, mining, manufacturing, paint and coatings, paper production, refineries, and wastewater treatment. This division also provides toll manufacturing, import services, and a variety of chemical services, such as ammonia tank inspections and ammonia system maintenance, repair, and safety.
Shrieve’s energy products and services division supplies base oils and drilling fluid additives essential to drilling, production, transmission, and refining activities. The company’s custom packaging division is a certified packager of non-flammable liquids (using totes, drums, pails, and bottles), a blender of custom lubricants—including motor oils, refrigerants, and brake fluids—and a provider of logistical support services for finished products.
Serving over 1,500 SKUs from 600 suppliers in 40 countries across North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, Shrieve supplies companies in the industrial, food ingredient, water treatment, agricultural, energy, and specialty lubricant sectors. The company’s infrastructure includes a sales network and over 50 global facilities, with key operating centers in the UK and China. Shrieve was founded in 1978 by Jim Shrieve and is headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas, near Houston.
The acquisition of Carbon Chemicals is the second add-on completed by Shrieve since the formation of the continuation fund and follows the November 2024 acquisition of Connection Chemical, a Pennsylvania-based distributor of industrial chemicals.
Carbon Group is a specialized distributor of chemicals, food ingredients, agricultural products, pharmaceutical raw materials, and paints that are used in the biopharma, cosmetics, beverages, and agri-food sectors, across Ireland and Europe. The company is led by Managing Director Brian Walsh and is headquartered near Cork in Ringaskiddy, Ireland.
“We are happy to welcome Carbon Group into the Shrieve Chemical family,” said Geoff Broglio, a managing director at Gemspring. “This investment reflects our ongoing commitment to expanding the specialty chemical product portfolio and capabilities that Shrieve can offer its customers.”
Gemspring invests in companies with revenues of up to $500 million and focuses on sectors including aerospace and defense, business and consumer services, financial and insurance services, industrial services, software and tech-enabled services, healthcare services, and specialty manufacturing.
In January 2023, Gemspring closed two funds: Gemspring Capital Fund III LP, its third buyout fund, at $1.7 billion, and Gemspring Growth Solutions Fund I LP, its first non-control investment fund, at an oversubscribed $400 million. With these closings, Gemspring, based in Westport, Connecticut, now manages $3.4 billion in capital.
KPMG Corporate Finance was the financial advisor to Carbon Group and Greenhill & Co. advised Shrieve Chemical.
© 2025 Private Equity Professional | June 24, 2025
