Pumps and compressors manufacturer Ingersoll Rand Inc is nearing a deal to sell its golf cart business to private equity firm Platinum Equity LLC for around USD 1.7 billion, people familiar with the matter said on Sunday. The deal will separate Ingersoll Rand from a business it acquired in 1995. It is the latest in a series of divestitures that CEO Vicente Reynal has embarked on to pay down debt and streamline the company’s portfolio following the merger last year of Ingersoll Rand’s industrial business with Gardner Denver Holdings Inc.

A deal could be announced as early as Monday, the sources said, requesting anonymity ahead of any official announcement. Ingersoll Rand and Platinum Equity did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The deal would be a bet by Platinum Equity on a potential rebound in golf as a recreational sport in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, which shrunk revenues for the industry by an estimated 6 percent in 2020, according to a report by IBISWorld.

Ingersoll Rand sold a majority stake in its high-pressure solutions business earlier this month to buyout firm American Industrial Partners for $300 million, reducing its exposure to the oil and gas exploration and production market.

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Los Angeles-based Platinum Equity is run by billionaire founder Tom Gores. The firm says it has around USD 23 billion in assets under management and also owns US basketball team the Detroit Pistons.

First Published:Apr 12, 2021 9:43 AM IST