UK and Ireland building merchant Grafton has completed the sale of its specialist UK plumbing and heating business, Plumbase.

A deal of £66.75 million was reached with Plumbing and Heating Investments Limited (PHIL) to purchase the business.

Plumbase generated sales of £257.8m and operating profit of £6m for the year ended 31 December 2018.

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This disposal forms part of Grafton's strategy of orientating towards higher returning businesses with good long-term growth prospects.

Gavin Slark, Chief Executive Officer of Grafton Group plc commented: "The sale of Plumbase to PHIL secures future opportunities for Plumbase, its employees and other stakeholders as part of an enlarged specialist plumbing and heating business. This transaction represents a very positive outcome for Grafton and enables us to continue to focus our capital and resources on attractive growth opportunities that generate appropriate returns for our shareholders."

(CM/MH)