Antin Infrastructure Partners has entered exclusive talks to buy German waste company Die Neumann Gruppe following a competitive auction process, three sources familiar with the sale said.

France-headquartered Antin, advised by RBC Capital Markets, saw off competition from I Squared Capital and Igneo Infrastructure Partners, the latter advised by Macquarie Capital, which were also shortlisted, the sources added.

The sale of Neumann Gruppe, led by Deutsche Bank, attracted interest from several other infrastructure investors during the earlier stages, including CVC DIF, which withdrew from the process ahead of the submission of final offers.

Family-owned Neumann Gruppe, led by managing director Heiko Neumann, focuses on the processing of incinerator bottom ash for disposal and for recovery of metals leftover from energy‑from‑waste (EfW) plants.

It also runs the Reesen landfill and has further operations in the sand, gravel, and construction supply sector.

Neumann Gruppe previously signed additional deals and added new equipment to achieve a EUR 1bn equity value for the business. It is targeting an EBITDA of more than EUR 100m for this year, which is up from about EUR 66m in 2025, Infralogic previously reported.

Antin has previously invested in the waste sector through its NextGen strategy, which includes Antin NextGen Infrastructure Fund I and a second vehicle in pre-launch, according to Infralogic data.

In 2023, the first fund backed the launch of tyre recycling business Infiniteria, which has plans to build facilities across Europe, starting initially in Sweden.

The French investor also owns district heating business Idex, which owns 13 EfW plants in France and is currently in the market.

Antin, Deutsche Bank, Igneo and I Squared declined to comment, while Neumann Gruppe, RBC Capital Markets and Macquarie Capital did not respond to requests for comment.