Atlas Copco completes Edwards acquisition
9 Jan 2014
Atlas Copco today announced it had completed its acquisition of UK vacuum pump manufacturer Edwards Group.
The Swedish first announced its intention to by Edwards for SEK 10.6 billion (£1.04bn) in August 2013, and was approved by Edwards shareholders in October.
Edwards will now become part of Atlas Copco’s new Vacuum Solutions division, which like Edwards will be based in Crawley, West Sussex. It is headed by Geert Follens, formerly the man in charge of Atlas Copco’s Industrial Air division.
Following the acquisition Edwards will be delisted from the US-based NASDAQ stock exchange.
Atlas Copco has initially paid Edwards shareholders USD 9.25 per share. Once Edwards’s audited 2013 income statement is final, an additional payment of up to USD 1.25 per share will be made, corresponding to a maximum total of USD 10.50 per share.
Edwards’s 2013 income statement is estimated to be ready before the end of the first quarter of 2014.
