Acquisition of UKAEA Limited

RNS Number : 2847Z

Babcock International Group PLC

18 September 2009

 



18 September 2009                 

Babcock International Group PLC

Acquisition of UKAEA Limited

Class 3 Transaction

Babcock International Group PLC (Babcock), the engineering support services company, today announces it has agreed to acquire UKAEA Ltd (UKAEA) from the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority for a cash consideration of £50 million. UKAEA will have cash balances of approximately £12 million on completion.  The transaction will complete when customary approvals are obtained.

The UKAEA has a world class reputation in the nuclear market place with over 50 years' experience in nuclear site management, operations and decommissioning and established advisory roles with a number of government organisations in both the UK and overseas. It provides a wide range of services including programme management, decommissioning, waste management, environmental services and technical consulting.  

Babcock already has one of the largest specialist nuclear services resources in the UK with well established positions in both the civil and military nuclear operational support and decommissioning markets. This acquisition provides Babcock with its first operational Tier 1 position in the civil nuclear market and a direct relationship with the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, complementing its existing Tier 1 position in the military nuclear market.  

The acquisition represents a significant extension to Babcock's existing nuclear skills by bringing proven capabilities in waste categorisation, decommissioning of high hazard facilities, encapsulation and storage of hazardous materials and transportation of waste, which are applicable to both the civil and military sectors.   

In the financial year ended 31 March 2009, UKAEA generated revenue of £32 million.  The financial results of UKAEA will be reported as part of the Nuclear division.  

Peter Rogers, Chief Executive of Babcock said: 

'We are delighted to be able to announce the acquisition of UKAEA. The high level of skills and expertise in UKAEA will further accelerate the growth of our Nuclear business. Babcock has an excellent track record of integrating acquisitions in the nuclear spectrum to deliver high levels of shareholder value. We are confident that with the UKAEA we will continue to build on this success.'

Enquiries: 

Babcock International Group PLC		020 7355 5300
Peter Rogers	Chief Executive
Bill Tame	Finance Director
Terri Wright	Head of Investor Relations
Financial Dynamics		020 7269 7291
Andrew Lorenz
Sophie Kernon

Notes to Editors 

Babcock International Group PLC

• Babcock International Group PLC is a FTSE 250 company with revenue of £1.9bn and profit before tax of £120.9m in 2008/09.  

• In 2008/09 BNS Nuclear Services, Babcock's Nuclear division reported revenue of £106.7m, operating profit of £13.0m with an operating return on revenue of 12.2%. 
  
  The division has been formed from the acquisitions of Alstec in 2006, International Nuclear Solutions and Strachan & Henshaw both completed in 2008.  

• Babcock has considerable experience of operating under the strict conditions required by the nuclear regulator.  
  
  In the military nuclear market, Babcock is a Tier 1 contractor and Nuclear Site Licensee at Devonport and Rosyth dockyards and HMNB Clyde (Faslane).
  
  At Devonport Babcock owns and operates the UK's only nuclear refuelling facilities for its nuclear submarine fleet, currently undergoing £150m of upgrade works to accommodate defueling of out of service submarines.  
  
  At Rosyth, Babcock has been responsible for the clean up of site previously used for refuelling the submarine fleet.  
  
  In the civil nuclear market, BNS Nuclear Services is now one of the major suppliers of nuclear engineering and support services. The division supports the UK's operational AGR fleet, providing outage and maintenance support around fuel route systems.  
  
  Babcock also provides design and engineering support for decommissioning work being undertaken at Sellafield, Dounreay and as part of the Chapelcross/Calder Hall decommissioning programme. 

UKAEA Ltd

• UKAEA Ltd is based in Harwell, with offices in Dounreay, Winfrith, Windscale and Warrington.
  

• It has three site management contracts at Dounreay, Harwell/Winfrith and Windscale.  
  

• It currently employs around 230 people engaged in site management, project and consulting work
  

 

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