BUSINESS NEWS
31 Mar 09. At the time of the acquisition of M/A-COM on 13 May 2008, Cobham plc (‘Cobham’ or ‘the Group’) announced that it planned to divest the commercial business segment, M/A-COM Technology Solutions (‘MTS’), as it was not core to the Group’s strategy. Excluded from the sale are cash and the freehold of the Walker Building in Lowell, Massachusetts valued at $10m. Following the completion of the transaction on 26 September and a thorough auction process, Cobham is pleased to announce that it has sold MTS to John Ocampo who is the owner of GaAs Labs, a semi-conductor private equity fund based in California for $30 million in cash, $30 million in senior loan notes secured on the MTS assets and $30 million dependent on future revenue in the period 2010 to 2012. The loan notes carry a rate of interest of 7.5%, which increases over time, and they are repayable in two equal tranches in December 2011 and 2012. There are no conditions to closing and the transaction has been completed. As previously indicated, in the year ended 30 September 2007 MTS recorded revenue of some $275m and operating profit of less than $10 million. Given significant reductions in end market demand and the fact that Cobham has retained the MTS cash, the business may need working capital and, if required, Cobham will make available a twelve month secured credit facility for up to $12m. It is estimated that there will be no gain or loss on sale. Given the completed divestment, Cobham now estimates that the effective multiple paid for the retained Aerospace and Defence segment to be 10.5x 2008 EBITDA. M/A-COM remains a value enhancing acquisition and is a critical part of Cobham’s microwave subsystem strategy. Warren Tucker, Cobham’s Chief Financial Officer, said: “Cobham has sold MTS in the face of difficult market conditions and this allows us to focus on our core business. Despite the reduction in valuation multiples and credit availability, we are pleased to have achieved a sensible economic outcome and to have placed MTS in the hands of owners who are specialists in the industry.”
27 Mar 09. Italian state-controlled shipbuilder Fincantieri saw revenues rise to €2.93bn ($3.9bn) in 2008, up 8 percent, the firm said March 27.
Net profit stood at €10m, down from 36m in 2007 due to the rising cost of raw materials in the first nine months of 2008 and the global financial crisis, Fincantieri said in a statement. New orders worth €2.5bn were booked, down from the record 4.2 billion in 2007, thanks “to the current financial crisis that has frozen new orders since September 2008,” the firm said. The total order book now stands at €10.8bn. Fincantieri said it would propose to the Italian government a cash capital increase of up to €300m, to be issued in one or more tranches. The firm last year said it received orders for two small to medium-sized cruise ships, four FREMM frigates for the Italian Navy, two U-212 submarines for the
Italian Navy, a fleet tanker for the Indian Navy and the refitting of two fast attack craft for the Kenyan Navy. Russia ordered a vessel for transporting nuclear waste. Fincantieri derives 80 percent of its revenue from cruise ship and merchant ship construction and 20 percent from naval work. The latter figure is expected to rise to 30 percent in 2009 with the incorporation in January of the U.S.-based
Manitowoc Marine Group, which controls the Marinette Marine and Bay Shipbuilding Co. shipyards. Fincantieri launched a successful $120m bid for the group last summer, with Lockheed Martin as a minority partner. (Source: Defense News)
26 Mar 09. Nammo expands in North America by setting up Canadian subsidiary. Scandinavian munitions and demilitarisation specialist Nammo has moved to expand its position in the North American market with the creation of Nammo Canada Inc, following the acquisition of a share of Ontario-based Primex Security Systems. The decision to establish the new subsidiary was taken in Febr