Transport consultancy JMP acquired by turnaround specialist
TRANSPORT planning and engineering consultancy JMP Consultants Ltd has been acquired by turnaround specialist Volvere in a deal worth more than £0.4m.
JMP, which has a network of nine offices around the country, including Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester, had been struggling under the weight of unsustainable pension legacy.
Volvere, which is spending £415,000 to acquire JMP’s assets, said its intention was to see the company continue trading as a going concern. The assets will be held in a wholly-owned subsidiary of Volvere which will continue to trade under the name JMP Consultants Ltd.
JMP is principally involved in a range of transport planning and related sectors such as environmental impact assessments. The business has approximately 150 full-time employees serving both the public and private sectors.
Volvere said it expected that its stake in the new company would be reduced over time by up to 25% through the issue of new equity in the company to key stakeholders. Volvere will also make a working capital facility available to JMP.
The estimated fair value of the net assets being acquired is thought to be around £0.6m but this will be dependent on payments being secured on existing contracts.
In the 12 months to March 31, 2013, JMP’s unaudited revenue was £10m with an adjusted pre-tax profit of £60,000.
Jonathan Lander, Chief Executive Officer of Volvere, said: “I am pleased to be making this investment in such a long-established and well-regarded consultancy. JMP’s existence was under threat from a legacy pension scheme deficit, which was unsustainable for the business going forward. The management and staff now have an excellent opportunity to grow their customer offering once again. We are looking forward to working with them.”
JMP’s Birmingham office, in Colmore Row, has worked on projects including the Wolverhampton Ring Road and new Bus Station, and Hereford’s Multi Modal study.
