Empower Group (Finland) - Dec 2007

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01 December 2007

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AAC Capital Partners has acquired both 3i and Profita’s stake in the Empower, which were 42% and 33% respectively. Management will invest alongside the new owner. The split between the GP and management has not been finalised. The investor was attracted to the deal because of the company’s management and its growth prospects. The new owners aim to continue to foster the company by strengthening the company’s presence in Russia and Sweden. It will also look to increase design, installation and maintenance of networks and industrial equipment.

Debt

The debt funding will be supplied by OKO Acquisition Finance and Nordic Mezzanine, but the remaining of the debt financing has not been finalised.

Previous funding

3i first invested in the business in 2004, when the listed group acquired a stake together with Nordea Capital for E24m, from Pohjolan Voima Group’s Powest Oy and Vattenfall Oy (January 2004, page 19). The split between 3i and Nordea Capital was 42% and 33% respectively. At the time, Profita Fund II Ky was managed by Nordea Capital. In 2005 Profita, Teknoventure Management, Aboa Venture Management and Wedeco Management acquired 85% of Nordea Capital. The initial buyout of Empower took seven months to complete due to the fact that the vendor was a large consortium, and partly because the two investors entered into difficult negotiations of the purchase of the non-profitable unit of the company, which 3i and Nordea were unwilling to undertake.

People

Berndt Schalin, director at 3i, will step down from the board. Johan Bjurström, managing partner of AAC Capital Partners and Kristofer Runnquist co-ordinated the investment behalf of AAC and will join the board of directors. Aappo Kontu is the managing director of Empower.

Advisers

Equity - Arthur D Little, (Commercial Due Diligence)Equity - Deloitte, (Financial Due Diligence)Equity - Hannes Snellman, (Legal)Equity - URS Corporation Ltd , (Environmental Due Diligence)Equity - Willis , (Insurance Due Diligence)Vendor - Borenius Kemppinen, Nina Vikman (Legal)Vendor - KPMG, Harald Quandt Family Trust (Other Due Diligence)Vendor - Nordea Group, Mika Viitanen (Other Consulting)