US buyout firm KKR & Co LP (NYSE:KKR) will acquire a majority stake in British subsea energy services provider Acteon Group Ltd from US investor First Reserve Corp, the latter announced on Monday without disclosing the terms of the deal.
The transaction is awaiting customary approvals and is seen to close by the end of the year. Following the completion, Acteon’s current executive management team will remain intact, keeping a significant shareholding in the company. Houston-based private equity firm White Deer Energy will invest in the UK business alongside KKR and the management.
The stake purchase will bring in funds that will help Acteon to pursue its objective to define the market in the relatively new and growing subsea services portion of the upstream industry.
Acteon was set up in 1989 and is headquartered in Norwich, UK. The company received its initial investment from First Reserve in 2006 and has since then finalised eight acquisitions, quadrupled its operating profits and significantly increased its geographic presence, the vendor’s managing directors, Will Honeybourne and Jeff Quake, said. At present, Acteon has facilities in Brazil, Singapore, the UAE, Malaysia, China, the UK, the US and Germany.
JP Morgan Cazenove Limited and Simmons & Company International consulted both First Reserve and Acteon, while HSBC Bank Plc provided advice to KKR.
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