SCOTTISH smart metering firm Energy Assets will be in a position to provide further information on its proposed takeover by US private equity firm Alinda Capital Partners “within the next few days”.
The takeover has been held up after a group of major investors threatened to vote against the deal, claiming the offer price of 685p undervalued the company.
The £198 million proposal represented a 40 per cent premium on the share price at the time, however the group said they preferred to have the opportunity to remain as shareholders for years to come.
The Livingston company’s board recommended shareholders accept the offer, however a group including Oakcliff Capital Partners LP, SF Metropolis Valuefund, Investmentaktiengesellschaft fur langfristige Investoren TGV, Forest Manor and Bryan Lawrence – which together own 22.6 per cent of the company’s shares – stated the offer price did not “represent a true reflection of the fundamental value of the company”.
This led Energy Assets to delay a vote set to take place on May 19 and hurriedly publish its results for the year ending March 31 in a trading update, as requested by the relevant shareholders.
The update on the takeover was announced in Energy Assets’ full preliminary results, in which the company confirmed a 20 per cent jump in pre-tax profit to £10.7 million on revenue of £45.3m, up 25 per cent.
Chief executive Phil Bellamy-Lee said: “The year has been very successful for Energy Assets, incorporating good organic growth across our asset portfolio and siteworks business from strong trading activity and new contract wins.”
Recurring revenue, generated from its meter and data asset portfolio, grew 12 per cent to £26.1m, as its owned and managed meter and data asset portfolio grew 23 per cent to 450,000 assets. The company said all existing major contracts across gas and electricity contributed to this growth.
Revenue from Siteworks activity grew 49 per cent to £19.2 million, and this area was one of three highlighted as a primary objective for Energy Assets in the current financial year.
Energy Assets reported that the integration of Blyth Utilities into the business was progressing well – highlighting the £6m contract with East Lothian Developments to provide utility networks. The previous acquisitions of Bglobal Metering, Origin and SA Gas are now fully integrated and contributing “expected” revenues to the business.
The company said it remained well-positioned to achieve its primary objectives which include consolidating its position as the largest independent metering and data service provider to the UK industrial and commercial (I&C) gas sector and growing its position across the utility sector.
Following its year end, the group developed a strategy to optimise the combined expertise of Blyth and its own Siteworks gas design and project management service to create Energy Assets Utilities, an arm that will deliver all utility network services and activities as an integral part of the wider group activities.
Mr Bellamy-Lee said the new financial year has started well, with all segments continuing to grow. “We are on track to deliver another year of strong operating and financial performance,” he said.
He added that the company continued to enjoy good relationships with its banking partners, saying that he was “confident that these relationships will provide sufficient funding to facilitate future growth plans”.
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