What Feralco does

Feralco is a European manufacturer of water treatment and process chemicals, headquartered in Helsingborg, Sweden and operating under family-owned holding company Mellby Gård. Founded in 2000 through the acquisitions of the water treatment businesses of Alcan and Laporte in the United Kingdom, the company has grown to 18 production facilities across 8 European countries and supplies clean drinking water to more than 100 million people in Europe. Its products span inorganic coagulants (aluminium sulphate, polyaluminum chloride, ferric chloride), cationic organic polymers, sodium hydroxide, sulphuric acid, and polymer/coagulant blends, serving drinking water purification, municipal and industrial wastewater treatment, and pulp and paper wet-end applications.

The core technology is chemical formulation and local manufacturing of coagulants and flocculants, augmented by technical service offerings such as jar-test feasibility studies, on-site trial support, tank inspections, and plant performance monitoring. The portfolio mixes commodity inorganic reagents with higher-value, highly cationic organic polymers designed to meet stricter discharge consent limits and to optimize treatment efficiency in sewage-sludge recycling and pulp/paper processes. The company holds ISO 14001, IPPC, and REACH compliance and is a member of INCOPA, giving it regulatory and industry-association standing within the European coagulants market.

Feralco operates a direct B2B enterprise field-sales model targeting three use-case segments — municipalities, general industry (food and beverage, tanning, textiles, paint, chemicals), and pulp and paper — with tailored products delivered from local production facilities. Revenue is generated through one-time sales of chemical products; pricing is not publicly disclosed and is negotiated through relationship-based sales channels. Growth has been driven primarily through European bolt-on acquisitions (14 disclosed since founding, the most recent being Eco92 in Italy in June 2024), with one divestiture (Akferal, Turkey, 2017), and the launch of FMG Circular Invest, a joint investment initiative with Mellby Gård targeting innovative water-sector companies.

Name

Feralco

Legal name

Feralco AB

Website

https://feralco.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Feralco is a European manufacturer of water treatment and process chemicals, producing coagulants, flocculants, and polymers for municipal drinking water, industrial wastewater, and pulp/paper customers across 18 production facilities in 8 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Water Treatment Chemicals

NAICS

Chemical Manufacturing (325), Other Basic Inorganic Chemical Manufacturing (325180)

SIC

Chemicals & Allied Products (2800)

akta.pro primary industry

Coagulants, Flocculants & Dewatering Aids (IMAEAJAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Municipal Wastewater & Sewage Treatment Chemicals (IMAEAJAB), Municipal Drinking Water Treatment Chemicals (IMAEAJAA), Industrial Wastewater Treatment Chemicals (IMAEAJAC)

Keywords

• Water treatment chemicals
• Coagulants and flocculants
• Industrial process chemicals
• Pulp and paper chemicals
• Municipal wastewater treatment

Headquarters

HQ city

Uster

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Water Treatment Chemicals Sales: Feralco generates revenue through the sale of coagulants and flocculants for drinking water treatment, municipal wastewater treatment, industrial effluents, and pulp/paper production processes. Products include polyaluminum chloride, ferric chloride, polymers, sodium hydroxide, aluminium sulphate, and iron/aluminium-based reagents.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Feralco manufactures and supplies water treatment and process chemicals — including inorganic coagulants (aluminium sulphate, polyaluminum chloride, ferric chloride) and cationic organic polymers — to municipalities for drinking water and wastewater treatment, to industries such as food and beverage, tanning, textiles, paint and chemicals for process and effluent treatment, and to pulp and paper producers for wet-end process optimisation. Sales are delivered directly from 18 production facilities across 8 European countries, accompanied by specialist technical services such as jar testing, on-site trial support, tank inspections and plant performance monitoring.

Product overview

Feralco is a leading supplier of water treatment and process chemicals with a comprehensive portfolio of traditional inorganic coagulants and innovative organic polymer products. The product portfolio includes Polyaluminum Chloride (PAC), Ferric Chloride, Aluminium Sulfate, Sodium Hydroxide, and various polymer and blended formulations serving drinking water treatment, municipal wastewater, industrial effluents, and pulp/paper processing applications. With 18 production facilities across Europe, Feralco provides both standard coagulant products and specialized cationic polymers designed to meet stricter discharge consent limits and optimize treatment efficiency across diverse industry sectors including municipalities, food and beverage, tanning, textiles, paint, chemical, and pulp and paper production.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Polyaluminum Chloride (PAC) Water treatment coagulant used for drinking water purification and wastewater treatment, working by de-stabilizing colloidal suspensions of surface water or groundwater.
• Ferric Chloride Solution Iron-based coagulant used for drinking water and wastewater treatment processes, effective for de-stabilizing charged particles in water.
• Sodium Hydroxide Solution Chemical reagent used in water treatment processes for pH adjustment and various industrial applications.
• Polymers (cationic coagulants and flocculants) Cationic coagulants and flocculants for drinking water, municipal and industrial effluents treatment, including highly cationic organic polymers designed to meet stricter discharge consent limits.
• Aluminium Sulfate Traditional inorganic coagulant for water and wastewater treatment applications.
• AI/Fe Blends Aluminium and iron-based blended coagulant reagents for industrial water treatment processes.
• Fe-Chloride Iron-based chloride coagulant for various water treatment applications.
• Specialised Iron-based Coagulants (Fe-Products) Specialized iron-based coagulants and reagents for industrial wastewater treatment.
• Sulphuric Acid Industrial acid used in water treatment and chemical production processes.
• Aluminium Sulfate (ALS, liquid and solid) Coagulant available in liquid and solid forms for water treatment applications.
• Specialised Aluminium-based Coagulants (Al-Products) Additional aluminium-based coagulants and reagents for specialized water treatment needs.
• Polymer/Coagulant Blends Combined polymer and coagulant formulations for optimized water treatment performance.
• Paper Process Chemicals Cationic coagulants and polymers for pulp and paper industry applications including paper sizing, retention, drainage, and management of interfering substances.

Quantifiable outcome

• Provides clean drinking water to more than 100 million people in Europe

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• FMG Circular InvestcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFMG Circular Invest is a joint strategic investment initiative established through collaboration between Mellby Gård and Feralco Group. The initiative focuses on investing in innovative companies that are addressing key water sector issues.
• INCOPA (European Inorganic Coagulants Producers Association)minorOthersFeralco is a member of INCOPA, a Cefic Sector Group within the European Chemical Industry Council. INCOPA is the voice of European coagulant producers and supports national and European legislative development and standardization within the EU.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Ecolab: Diversified water, hygiene, and process chemicals provider serving industrial and municipal customers with overlapping water treatment chemistry offerings, including coagulants and boiler/cooling water programs.
• Albemarle Corporation: Large specialty chemicals company with inorganic chemistry capabilities touching water treatment inputs; broader portfolio than Feralco but a credible competitor in select inorganic coagulant chemistries.
• Veolia Water Technologies: Global water services giant offering treatment chemicals alongside equipment and services; overlaps with Feralco in coagulants but as part of a much broader water solutions portfolio.
• BASF: Global chemical major with a sizable water solutions portfolio and inorganic coagulant capabilities; competes with Feralco at the broad-chemistry level though not specialized in inorganic coagulants.

Direct peers

• Solenis: Specialty chemicals producer focused on pulp and paper process chemistries (retention, drainage, sizing), directly competing with Feralco's paper segment and offering adjacent water treatment chemistry.
• Hydrite Chemical: US-based specialty chemical manufacturer and distributor offering water treatment chemistries (coagulants, flocculants, cleaners) with similar B2B municipal and industrial customer model.
• SNF Floerger: World's largest producer of polyacrylamide-based flocculants and coagulants, directly competing with Feralco in cationic polymers for water, wastewater, and paper applications.
• Kemira: Finland-headquartered global leader in water-intensive chemistry, including coagulants and flocculants for municipal and industrial water treatment, with overlapping pulp and paper chemistry exposure.

Regional players

• Kurita Water Industries: Japan-based major water treatment chemicals and services provider with overlapping coagulant, flocculant, and boiler/cooling water portfolios; primarily serves Asia-Pacific but competes in global technology benchmarks.

Emerging players

• Buckman Laboratories: Specialty chemicals supplier with strong pulp and paper focus and growing water treatment offerings; smaller and more niche than Feralco but overlapping in cationic polymers and process chemistry.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/feralco-schweiz-ag

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Feralco