Simmons & Co in Aberdeen has completed four deals in the first quarter of 2012 with a total deal value of GBP340million. The corporate finance advisers to the energy sector are also reporting one of the strongest pipeline of deals in its history in the UK.
Simmons & Co’s forecast for a high level of M&A activity in 2011 proved accurate as the Aberdeen office reported completing 22 deals worth almost $1billion last year. Globally the firm completed 46 M&A transactions and 16 equity and debt offerings.
Nick Dalgarno (pictured), managing director at Simmons, says: “With continued high oil prices and increased global activity, we are seeing a very high level of deals with a real mixture of players in the market. Following a strong first quarter, we have several deals nearing completion and more on the horizon, all of which paint an exciting picture of a very buoyant market.”
The completed deals in the first quarter of 2012 include the sale of Zenith to Lufkin, the acquisition of Optima by Tetra and the management buy-in to Gall Thomson Environmental by Phoenix Equity Partners.
Simmons acted for Aberdeen-based Zenith in its sale to Lufkin Industries Inc. The international provider of innovative technology and products for the monitoring and analysis of downhole data and related completion products for the artificial lift market offers a strong complement to Lufkin’s fast-growing automation business.
Tetra Technologies Inc sought Simmons’ services in its acquisition of Aberdeen-based rig cooling services specialist, Optima, in March 2012.
Simmons acted as corporate finance adviser to Phoenix Equity Partners in their acquisition of Gall Thomson Environmental as the platform for a buy and build investment strategy in the flow control sector of the oil and gas industry.
Dalgarno added; “These deals represent the diverse nature of transactions we work on and underline our capabilities and expertise from trade sales to acquisitions and private equity investment. In each deal, we have demonstrated the added-value we bring through our knowledge of the global industry, local and international marketplaces.”