Bayard Capital, an Australian private equity group headed by Mr Cameron O'Reilly, has agreed to buy a Swiss firm that makes and manages electricity meters.
The value of the deal was not disclosed but sources said that Bayard Energy, the energy management division of Bayard Capital, paid up to €140 million for Landis+Gyr, one of the world's oldest metering firms.
Bayard Capital was set up in 2003 with more than Australian $100 million investment from wealthy backers, including Cameron's father, Sir Anthony O'Reilly. Prominent Australian businessmen, Mr John Fairfax and Mr Kerry Stokes, and a rich businessman based in New Zealand, Mr Douglas Myers, are shareholders in the group. The investment arm of the Singapore government, Temasek Holdings, is also a shareholder in the firm.
Alongside the acquisition of Landis+Gyr, Deutsche Capital Partners, an arm of Deutsche Bank, also disclosed that it has invested in Bayard Capital. It is believed Deutsche Capital Partners is now the single largest shareholder in Bayard Capital, although it is unclear how much cash it invested in the business.
Mr Cameron O'Reilly, the eldest of Sir Anthony's three sons and managing director of Bayard Capital, said yesterday the group was seeking to develop a firm focused on energy management conservation for the long term. This sector would provide good long-term growth, he added.
Mr O'Reilly said the goal of Bayard Capital and its shareholders was to undertake a a public flotation of the business. This could occur in three to five years.
Bayard Energy, the energy management division of Bayard Capital, bought the Swiss meter firm Landis+Gyr from Demag Holding, a firm controlled by the New York leveraged buyout group Kohlberg Kravis Roberts.
Landis+Gyr was founded in 1896 and reported sales of €388.5 million in its fiscal 2003 year.
The acquisition by Bayer Capital is its second in electricity meter management following its purchase of Ampy Email, an electricity and gas metering firm in Australia and Britain, last year.
The combined group will have more than 3,500 staff located in 27 countries and annual sales of about €450 million, according to a statement from Bayer Capital.
