The air cargo container market is in for a shake-up with the combination of leading suppliers Envirotainer and va-Q-tec.

Envirotainer’s parent company EQT Private Equity received approval from the competition authorities in Germany and Austria in June for its majority takeover offer of va-Q-tec, supported by co-investors Mubadala and Cinven. This authorization gives the clearance to combine the two brands, with Envirotainer for the active part and va-Q-tec for the advanced passive temperature-controlled supply chain solutions. The non-pharmaceutical operations of the latter will continue to operate separately.

The move will see Envirotainer grow its portfolio and service station network in line with growing demand from the pharma sector. va-Q-tec’s passive boxes and containers which work without external energy input are considered a perfect match to Envirotainer’s active unit load device (ULD) containers and dry ice shipping solution.

The full combination is expected to take place during the second half of 2024.

“Together, we will enable even greater global access to life-saving temperature-sensitive pharmaceuticals. The combination marks the start of a new accelerated period of growth for Envirotainer, fuelled by a comprehensive portfolio of temperature-controlled solutions tailored for customers across the whole spectra of the pharmaceutical industry,” Envirotainer CEO Peter Gisel-Ekdahl.