Inspired Energy makes double acquisition for nearly £6m

Lancashire-based energy procurement specialist Inspired Energy has made double acquisition for a total of nearly £6m.

The AIM-listed Kirkham company has bought neighbouring firm ECM, a niche operator of water and energy management services, specialising in water engineering solutions, for £0.5m, with a potential further deferred consideration of up to £1.5m.

ECM provides a range of water management services to corporate customers, including water procurement, bill validation, retrospective audit of water bills, leak detection and repair and compliance services, and will broaden Inspired’s service offering within its core corporate division.

For the financial year ended May 31, 2017, ECM delivered revenues of £0.74m, EBITDA of £0.15m and generated operating cash of £0.13m.

Inspired has also bought Bedford-headquartered SystemLink 2000, a supplier of energy management software, enabling customers to effectively monitor and manage their utilities consumption, for almost £3.9m.

SystemsLink’s energy management platform “Energy Manager” is licensed to public and private sector energy users, energy consultancies and third party intermediaries.

Inspired has been a licensee of Energy Manager since the Group’s IPO in 2011, to support its service offering and energy management needs of the core Corporate Division. The acquisition brings this capability in-house, providing security of access.

The were financed from the group’s existing financial resources, with funding provided by a drawdown of the group’s existing £12.5m acquisition facility with Santander.

Inspired chief executive Mark Dickinson said: “We are delighted to conclude the acquisitions of SystemsLink and ECM, which are highly complementary additions to Inspired’s core corporate division. These acquisitions broaden our customer base and further enhance our sector specialisms and service offering.

“We look forward to working closely with the highly experienced and knowledgeable teams of both businesses as we continue to advance our position as a market leader.”

Inspired was advised by Gateley’s Manchester team. It was led by corporate partner Paul Jefferson, supported by corporate associate Leigh Whittaker and banking and finance solicitor Patrick McCoy.

News of the acquisitions was timed to coincide with the company’s results to December 31, which show a 28% increase in revenue to £27.8m and pre-tax profits of £3.55m, 12% down on 2016, although the adjusted figure shows them up to £9.7m from £7.02m.

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