Satellite manufacturer Thales Alenia Space has completed its acquisition of the space activities of Systems Engineering & Assessment Limited (SEA) as part of its push into the UK.
Under the terms of the transaction, Thales’ recently formed subsidiary…
Satellite manufacturer Thales Alenia Space has completed its acquisition of the space activities of Systems Engineering & Assessment Limited (SEA) as part of its push into the UK.
Under the terms of the transaction, Thales’ recently formed subsidiary Thales Alenia Space UK Ltd paid an initial cash consideration of £5m (US$8.4m). A further cash payment of up to £1.5m could be paid based on SEA’s working capital position at the time of completion.
Based in Bristol and founded in 1988, SEA provides systems engineering and software design services for the aerospace, defence and transport markets. The company was acquired by technology group Cohort for around £25m in 2007.
SEA’s space-focused activities include subsystem and instrument design and manufacture, electronics for satellites and simulation software.
For the year ended 30 April 2013, the space business reported a gross margin of £0.3m on revenues of £5.1m and a small operating loss after overheads.
At the beginning of the year, the space division announced that it had designed a flexible, modular nanosatellite architecture, under a programme funded by the European Space Agency. Known collectively as the OmniSat architecture, it is a complete nanosatellite ‘kit of parts’ that can be reconfigured to build nanospacecraft to suit a range of Earth orbiting commercial and scientific activities.
For Thales, the acquisition further bolsters its footprint in the UK. The company established a UK subsidiary at the end of April and set up an office in Harwell, Oxfordshire, a location that has increasingly become a hub of space-based business and institutions.
Thales also operates space propulsion activities in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Commenting on the deal, Martin Gee, CEO of Thales Alenia Space UK, said: “Our decision to come to the UK, motivated by the UK government’s work has been supported by concrete actions to bolster the development of our activities in the short term.
“Our acquisition of the space business of SEA gives a kickstart to our ambitions in the UK, and aligns well with the global business of Thales Alenia Space, and in particular regarding a number of technologies that have been developed here in the UK by the SEA engineers, and their use in future space missions, in addition to a number of exciting ongoing international programmes.”
