LM Group Holding A/S announces today that Doughty Hanson, the European private equity firm, has agreed to sell its stakes in LM Wind Power Holding A/S to GE for an enterprise value of EUR 1.5 billion. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2017, subject to regulatory approvals. The acquisition is valued at 8.3 times 2016 forecast EBITDA. LM Wind Power Holding A/S is the parent company of LM Group Holding A/S. The closing of the transaction will constitute a change of control under LM Group Holding A/S’s EUR 130 million fixed rate notes due 2019 and NOK 475 million floating rate notes due 2020.
Originally founded in 1940 as a furniture manufacturer, LM Wind Power has evolved to become one of the leading manufacturers of rotor blades for the wind industry. It has a global manufacturing footprint of 13 sites in eight countries across four continents and continues to expand.
For the first half of 2016, the company reported sales of EUR 491 million and EBITDA of EUR 87 million which represented year-on-year growth of 40% and 81% respectively. In June of this year, LM Wind Power unveiled the world’s longest ever blade at 88.4 meters long, demonstrating the Company’s continued strength in technology and manufacturing.
Commenting on the transaction, LM Wind Power CEO Marc de Jong, said:
“The offer from GE makes clear commercial sense for the growth of LM Wind Power and we are absolutely delighted with the prospects of having a world leader as our owner. It provides us with the necessary stability, visibility and strength to continue to realize the ambitious growth plans of the business and fully utilize our advanced design and technology, improve our manufacturing capabilities and reliability, expand our global footprint and reduce the Levelized Cost of Energy. It’s a great day for LM Wind Power and for the wind industry!”
LM Wind Power has produced more than 185,000 blades since 1978, corresponding to approximately 77 GW installed wind power capacity which each year effectively saves approximately 147 million tons of CO2. This corresponds to the annual CO2 emissions from electricity used in 20 million (US) homes.
