LDC invests £20m in SGI carve-out from Kiwa

Kenny Wastell
02 May 2019

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LDC has invested ТЃ20m in the management buyout of Netherlands-headquartered environmental testing and consultancy firm Shield Group International (SGI) from UK trade vendor Kiwa.

Following the deal, SGI will pursue an acquisitive growth strategy with a view to expanding internationally. The company said in a statement that it intends to capitalise on regulatory developments that are increasing demand for services in its field.

The GP has introduced Inspicio founder Mark Silver as non-executive chairperson of SGI and former Snell Advanced Media chief financial officer Paul Horton as its CFO. LDC investment director Guy Bagshaw and director Jonathan Bell have also taken seats on the SGI board as non-executive directors.

M&G investments provided a debt package and Barclays provided a working capital debt facility to support the transaction.

Company
Headquartered in Rotterdam and until recently known as Kiwa Compliance International, SGI is an environmental testing, inspection and consultancy firm serving the energy, industrial and public sectors. It focuses on health and safety services related to legionella, water safety, asbestos and other hazardous materials.

SGI generates revenues of around £50m, according to the statement, and has a headcount of 600 across offices in the UK, the Netherlands, Belgium, Norway, France and Spain.

People
LDC – Guy Bagshaw (investment director); Jonathan Bell (director); Kelsey Bayley (investment executive).
Shield Group International – Frank-Maarten Gribnau (CEO); Gavin Hartley (UK managing director); Alain Jeger (European managing director).

Advisers
Equity – GCA Altium (corporate finance); DLA Piper (legal); Deloitte (financial due diligence); KPMG (financial due diligence); Intechnica (IT due diligence).
Management – Harrison Clark Rickerbys (legal).