Livingstone advises Amadys on the acquisition of Austrian SKG Netzwerktechnik
Livingstone advised Amadys Group, a Belgian portfolio company of Equistone Partners Europe, on the add-on acquisition of SKG Netzwerktechnik GmbH. With this acquisition, Amadys establishes its first market presence in Austria. Amadys has acquired 100% of the shares in SKG Netzwerktechnik GmbH and its subsidiary FCS Fiber Components Slovakia s.r.o., headquartered in Schwechat, Austria, with an additional site in Nitra, Slovakia. The closing of the transaction is still pending, subject to regulatory approval by the competent Austrian regulatory authorities.
Headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, Amadys is a leading system integrator of end-to-end connectivity solutions for the telecom, infrastructure, energy and data centre markets. Amadys is active in the Benelux, Germany and Denmark as well as now also in Austria and Slovakia and has an annual turnover of more than EUR 200 million. Amadys Group is a provider of passive network component solutions for utility infrastructure and offers a wide range of products – focusing on telecommunications, water, gas and electricity – as well as industrial applications. Funds advised by Equistone, together with management, had acquired Amadys in December 2019.
SKG was founded in 1978 and is a leading supplier of active and passive products for network technology and data cabling in Austria. More than 70% of the revenue of SKG is generated by Wide Area Network (WAN) and telecom products, although the product portfolio includes Local Area Network (LAN) applications and maintenance and installation services as well. SKG supplies large installation companies, construction companies, government institutions and telecommunications providers.
The acquisition of SKG is an important next step in Amadys’ development as a European provider of total connectivity solutions and continues the successful buy-and-build process which is the foundation of Amadys’ growth and internationalization strategy.
“We are extremely happy to welcome SKG in the Amadys Group”, says Arthur Graevendiek, Managing Director DACH region. “SKG has more than 40 years of experience in the fiber optic domain and serves its customers with highly reliable products, solutions and systems. Since Austria and Belgium are very similar in terms of Fiber To The Home (FTTH) developments, we can use the accumulated experience of Amadys to support SKG to become a major player in the FTTH market.”
“With the acquisition of SKG, Amadys has succeeded in continuing its growth path and further expanding its footprint as well as successfully continued the buy-and-build story in the DACH region following the acquisition of the German company tso GmbH in spring. I believe that this transaction will further strengthen the market position of Amadys as well as of SKG within the currently booming FTTX market. We are pleased to have advised the Amadys management and Equistone on another add-on transaction”, added Johannes Faber, Partner at Livingstone Düsseldorf.
Hein Wilderjans, CEO of Amadys Group, added: “I would like to thank the Tremmel family, as ultimate shareholders of the selling SKB Industrieholding, for the trust they have placed in us during this structured transaction. In addition, special thanks to the Livingstone team, whose guidance helped this process to a successful conclusion despite all the Covid19-related challenges between Austria and Slovakia on the one hand and Belgium and Germany on the other hand.”
The acquisition of SKG by Amadys marks the twelfth successful transaction advised by Livingstone’s telecommunication and infrastructure sector team within the last 24 months.
