Sagard, TowerBrook and French investment bank Bpifrance SA are seeking to buy a majority stake in Sabena Technics.

The investor group is in exclusive talks with Sabena's parent TAT Group on the proposed transaction, with the deal expected to be finalized in the second quarter of 2019.

TAT would stay on as a minority shareholder, while TAT Chairman Rodolphe Marchais will become president of Sabena's supervisory board. Philippe Rochet will become the executive CEO and shareholder, alongside the group's existing senior executives Jean Marc Schaefer, Gilles Foultier, Philippe Delisle and Fabrice Dumas.

Paris-based Sabena provides aircraft maintenance- and modification-solutions in Europe. It seeks a turnover of €600 million in 2021 under a strategic plan.

Sagard is a French investor formed by Power Corp. of Canada, with a focus on midsized companies in the industrial and service sectors in France, Belgium and Switzerland. TowerBrook is a global private equity firm with main offices in New York and London.