Environmental services specialist BHSL aims to boost sales to €100 million after buying wastewater company Glan Agua for more than €10 million.
BHSL owns three businesses, which convert waste to energy, treat industrial wastewater and process household rubbish.
The company confirmed on Tuesday that it has agreed to buy Irish wastewater treatment business Glan Agua from its Portuguese owner, Mota Engil.
Neither side revealed the price, but it is understood to be more than €10 million.
BHSL says that the deal will more than double its sales, prompting the company to target revenues of more than €100 million next year.
Glan Agua has operations in the Republic and UK, working with utilities that include Irish Water, Thames Water and Yorkshire Water.
Denis Brosnan, BHSL executive chairman, described Glan Agua as an excellent fit.
"Glan Agua's blue-chip client base in the UK and Ireland provides a strong platform for further expansion in the municipal water and waste sector," he said.
Based in Loughrea, Co Galway, Glan Agua is the leading provider of water and wastewater treatment systems in the Republic while it is rapidly growing in the UK.
It has three divisions, Glan Agua, which focuses on the Irish market, MEIC Ltd, which supports its sister company with engineering and architectural services, and Glan Agua UK Ltd.
Karl Zimmerer, Glan Agua's managing director, predicted that the BHSL deal would make the company part of a growing business focused on water and waste management in Ireland and Britain.
Regulator approval
Mergers regulator, the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, must approve the takeover before it can go ahead.
Regulators’ approval will make the deal BHSL’s third since Mr Brosnan took over as executive chairman in 2016. Shareholders have backed this with funding of more than €30 million.
BHSL noted that a recent debt and equity fund-raising, backed by Irish and international sponsors, supported the Glan Agua deal.
“Funds raised will support the acquisition and provide growth capital for further expansion,” said a statement.
BHSL Waste Solutions owns its own system for converting poultry manure, municipal sludge and other by-products into heat and energy.
A second division, Hydro International treats industrial wastewater, a business the group says complements its latest acquisition.
Its third operation, Waterford Port-based Glanway, is licensed to process 230,000 tonnes of household waste a year.
Mota Engil is a Lisbon stock exchange-listed group with businesses in construction, energy, engineering and waste management.
