Acquisition of Rock and Alluvium

Van Elle Holdings PLC

26 October 2023

 

Van Elle Holdings plc

('Van Elle', the 'Company' or the 'Group')

Acquisition of Rock and Alluvium

& Investor Presentation

Van Elle Holdings plc (AIM: VANL), the UK's largest ground engineering contractor, announces that it has agreed to acquire the entire issued share capital of Rock and Alluvium Limited ('Rock and Alluvium'), a leading UK based piling specialist, for a total consideration of up to £3.8m on a cash-free, debt-free basis (the 'Acquisition'), subject to completion accounts.

Based in Leatherhead, Rock and Alluvium was established in 1963, joined Galliford Try Holdings plc ('Galliford Try') in 1989, and has built a strong reputation primarily serving the residential and commercial sectors in London and the South East. The business operates a well invested fleet of 11 piling rigs which complements Van Elle's existing capital investment programme, has a highly trained workforce and an experienced management team.

Rock and Alluvium represents a strategic and complementary acquisition for the Group and will be integrated within Van Elle's General Piling Division. It provides the Group with an established presence in the South East, a region with good mid-term growth prospects which is currently under-served by Van Elle.

The Company also announces it has entered into a five-year trading agreement with Galliford Try under which Van Elle will provide piling and geotechnical services (the 'Trading Agreement'). The Board anticipates that the Trading Agreement will generate revenues in excess of £10m per annum.

The cash consideration payable for the Acquisition comprises an initial payment of £1.8m, and a deferred consideration payment of £2.0m (subject to completion accounts), payable 12 months from completion, with both payments to be satisfied through the Group's existing cash and banking facilities. The Company's balance sheet remains strong and is expected to be in a net cash position post transaction, providing the Group with headroom to support further organic and inorganic investment opportunities.

For the year ended 30 June 2023, Rock and Alluvium generated revenues of £15.5m and a draft operating loss of £0.2m. The assets subject to the Acquisition had a net asset value of approximately £3.7m as at 30 June 2023.

The Acquisition is expected to be accretive to underlying earnings in the first full year of ownership, and the Board is confident that modest cost synergies will be realised when fully integrated. The Acquisition is expected to complete in mid-November 2023.

Mark Cutler, Chief Executive of Van Elle, commented:

"I am delighted to announce the acquisition of Rock and Alluvium and our Trading Agreement with Galliford Try, which I am confident will deliver positive benefits for both parties.  This deal accelerates our expansion into London and the South East, by bringing a highly regarded business and team into the Group with a proven track record, a strong order book and a well invested fleet.

"This follows the acquisition of ScrewFast Foundations in 2021.  The Board has been very disciplined in reviewing acquisition opportunities in the intervening period to ensure they will support the delivery of our growth strategy. I believe that Rock and Alluvium will prove to be an excellent addition to the Group.

"I look forward to welcoming the management team and all Rock and Alluvium employees to Van Elle."

Investor Presentation: 11.00am on Friday 27 October 2023

Mark Cutler, Chief Executive Officer, and Graeme Campbell, Chief Financial Officer, will hold a presentation to discuss the Acquisition through the digital platform Investor Meet Company.

Investors can sign up to Investor Meet Company for free and add to meet Van Elle Holdings plc via the following link https://www.investormeetcompany.com/van-elle-holdings-plc/register-investor.

Investors who have already registered and added to meet the Company will automatically be invited. Questions can be submitted pre-event to [e-mail], or in real time during the presentation via the "Ask a Question" function.

Certain information contained in this announcement would have constituted inside information (as defined by Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014) ("MAR") prior to its release as part of this announcement and is disclosed in accordance with the Company's obligations under Article 17 of those Regulations.

More information on Rock and Alluvium can be found on its website at: www.rockal.com

For further information, please contact:

Van Elle Holdings plc Mark Cutler, Chief Executive Officer Graeme Campbell, Chief Financial Officer	Via Walbrook
Peel Hunt LLP (Nominated Adviser and corporate broker) Ed Allsopp / Ben Harrington	Tel: [phone]
Walbrook PR Limited	Tel: [phone] or [e-mail]
Tom Cooper / Nick Rome	07971 221 972 or 07748 325 236

About Van Elle Holdings plc:

Van Elle Holdings is the UK's largest specialist geotechnical engineering contractor. Formed in 1984 and listed on AIM in 2016, the Company provides a wide range of ground engineering techniques and services including ground investigation, general and specialist piling, rail geotechnical engineering, modular foundations, and ground improvement and stabilisation services.

Van Elle operates through three divisions: General Piling, Specialist Piling and Rail, and Ground Engineering Services; and is focused on diverse end markets including residential and housing, infrastructure and regional construction - across which the Group has completed more than 20,000 projects over the last 35 years.

 

END