SEATRONICS acquired by ASHTEAD TECHNOLOGY

Ashtead Technology agreed on 24 October 2024 to acquire Seascan, known as Seatronics, together with its sister company J2 Subsea, from Acteon Group, for a cash consideration of , and completed the deal on 26 November. The two businesses, which provide subsea electronics and ROV tooling rental and services, had been part of Acteon for more than a decade. Acteon is majority owned by One Equity Partners and Buckthorn Partners. Over the twelve months to September 2024, Seatronics and J2 together generated revenue of and adjusted earnings of , an EBITDA margin of , with aggregated gross assets of £31.5 million at the end of 2023. They operated from the United Kingdom, the United States, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates, earning 55% of their revenue outside Europe, and brought more than 100 specialist technical staff and over 7,000 proprietary assets into the group. The purchase enlarged Ashtead Technology’s survey and robotics rental fleet by about 30% and strengthened its international footprint. Although Seatronics and J2 had traditionally served oil and gas customers, their equipment is also used on offshore renewables projects. Chief executive Allan Pirie said the deal, the group’s ninth in seven years, would let it offer a broader range of technology to its clients, while Acteon chief executive Brice Bouffard presented the sale as a step in focusing his group’s service portfolio. Ashtead Technology planned to invest around £10 million in the acquired rental fleets during the first year of ownership. Pro-forma leverage stood at about 1.8 times as of 30 June 2024, with a reduction below 1.5 times expected by the end of 2025.

The acquisition of Seatronics is part of the growth strategy of Ashtead Technology, which already has several external growth operations under its belt, notably Ace Winches in 2023.