Big global PE group Advent International, which bought Portobello Capital and Vista Capital out of Maxam at the end of 2011, hired Morgan Stanley to sell its stake in the mining and civil blast consumables and technology company last October. It was reported at the time that Advent was looking to raise up to €675 million from the sale - equal to 8-10-times Maxam's latest EBITDA - in a transaction valuing the Spanish company at up to €1.5 billion.

This week's statement by Maxam, Rhone and Advent did not disclose the value of the new transaction.

Maxam, which competes with Australia's Orica and Incitec Pivot, and South Africa's BME, reportedly generated revenue of €1.05 billion in 2016, and €1.1 billion in its latest financial year ended March 31, 2018.

The company, founded in 1872 by Alfred Nobel, reportedly booked EBITDA of €146 million in FY2016. It has about 6,500 employees in more than 50 countries.

An IPO has repeatedly been ruled out by the Spanish company's management, led by chairman and CEO Jose F. Sanchez-Junco.

"Over recent years, the company has evolved from a Spanish manufacturer of explosives towards a global technology leader, which specializes in energetic materials," Maxam said this week.

"This transformation - based on targeted international expansion and the development of a best in class technology platform - has been accompanied by continuous profitable growth."