One of Greater Cincinnati’s biggest family-owned manufacturers is changing hands, but it is not packing up. Republic Wire, a major producer of low-voltage copper and aluminum wire for utilities and wholesale distributors, agreed Monday to be acquired by French cable heavyweight Nexans in a deal reported at roughly $797 million. Company statements said the business will remain based in the Cincinnati area.
Deal details
As reported by the Cincinnati Business Courier, the U.S. dollar headline price is about $797 million, and that coverage noted Republic Wire’s reported 2025 revenue of roughly $615 million. Local reporting framed the sale as one of the more significant exits for a privately held Cincinnati-area manufacturer in recent years.
Financials and timeline
In its announcement, Nexans said the transaction represents an enterprise value of roughly €680 million with an additional earn-out of up to €43 million. The company added that Republic Wire generated about €520 million in current revenue over the 12 months through February 2026, and that the deal is expected to close early in the third quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals.
Local footprint
Republic Wire’s corporate site shows a single-site manufacturing and distribution campus in West Chester and lists its address as 5525 Union Center Drive in West Chester Township. Earlier coverage of its new West Chester distribution hub noted the expansion and tax-abatement structure tied to the project.
Why it matters
Nexans framed the purchase as a way to establish a broader U.S. platform in low-voltage wiring, projecting roughly €23 million of run-rate synergies within three years and describing Republic Wire as a complementary manufacturing and distribution asset. The buyer said it intends to maintain Republic Wire’s Ohio operations and keep the current management team in place as the business is integrated.
For Cincinnati, the sale keeps a major manufacturing operation anchored locally even as ownership shifts overseas, and company and local officials have said they expect continuity for workers and customers while the transition proceeds. Representatives for Republic Wire and Nexans did not immediately provide additional comment beyond the announcements used in this report.
