Spice sees future in Energy 2000
UTILITY support services company Spice has continued on the acquisition trail after buying a commercial energy broker.
Leeds-based Spice has snapped up Energy 2000 Marketing for a sum which could reach £5.75m.
Spice has paid £2.25m up front for the company, which will form part of Spice's Energy Services business, with a further sum payable dependent on Energy 2000's results for the year ended April 30 2009.
Energy 2000 acts as agent for industrial and commercial customers to procure gas and electricity from suppliers.It also provides consultancy services advising its customers on various energy related matters including measuring and reducing their carbon footprint and dealing with the climate change levy.
The company, which employs 19 people, was established in 1989 by its directors, Neil Williams and Peter Whiteside. The pair will remain with the business following the acquisition.
Following the acquisition, Energy 2000's year end will be changed to April, in line with Spice's.
Energy 2000, based in Lytham, Lancashire, had turnover of £1.12m for the year ended October 31, with operating profits of £0.2m.
It is estimated that Energy 2000's results for the year to April 30 will show turnover of £1.2m and adjusted operating profits of £0.4m.
Simon Rigby, chief executive of Spice, said: “The acquisition of Energy 2000 continues our expansion in the energy management sector.
“The business is well known to us being based in the same town as our existing business, with a common heritage and brings with it additional consultancy skills as well as energy procurement.
“The skill base within our Energy Services business will benefit from the addition of these extra consultancy skills.”
Mr Williams said: “We are delighted to be joining the Spice group. We have been discussing this for some time and we believe that, as part of Spice, our business will be able to continue to grow and enable us to offer a wider range of services to our customer base.”
At the back end of last year, Spice made three acquisitions and Mr Rigby said the business would expand through acquisitions and organic growth.
