Overview
- The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, reported Ecolab is close to buying CoolIT from KKR for $4.5 billion to $5 billion.
- Sources said an announcement could come next week, though no agreement has been finalized.
- CoolIT makes liquid-cooling systems for data centers after starting with gaming PC solutions and shifting to AI infrastructure.
- The mooted price would mark a sharp rise from the roughly $270 million valuation when KKR took a majority stake in 2023.
- Mubadala Investment Company remains a minority shareholder in CoolIT, and Ecolab’s core business centers on water, hygiene, and infection prevention.