Infrastructure acquisition gambles on smart metering

By Mike Hayes01 August 2017

Li ka shing cka

Billionaire Hong Kong businessman Li Ka-shing

A consortium led by Cheung Kong Infrastructure (CKI) Holdings is set to acquire German energy and water metering firm Ista, in a deal reportedly worth US$5.3 billion.

If the deal goes through, CKI – with its joint venture partner Midco 5 – will be celebrating its second multi-billion-dollar acquisition of the year, having already paid US$5.8 billion for Australian pipeline operator and power distributer Duet Group.

The move shows the firm – part of CK Hutchinson, which is controlled by the Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-Shing – is willing to bet on the increasing adoption of smart metering technology.

The gamble seems a reasonable one, given that governments across Europe are proposing to step up reductions in energy usage and cut greenhouse gases. The EU has promised a directive, requiring member countries to reduce their energy use by as much as 30% by 2030.

Last year, Ista reported EBITDA of €370 million (US$437 million), on sales of €850 million (US$1 billion).

 

 

Latest News
Vinci to build and operate 106 EV charging stations across Germany
French construction giant Vinci has won a deal to acquire land and then build and operate 106 charging stations for electric vehicles (EVs) across Germany.
APEX Asia - product launches
An insight into what products willl be present at the China-based show this month
UK selects six designs for construction of small modular nuclear reactors
The UK government has selected six companies to advance to the next phase of a competition to design and build small modular reactors (SMRs) to generate nuclear power.