5 September 2022

Ashtead Technology Holdings plc

("Ashtead Technology" or the "Group")

Acquisition of WeSubsea

Ashtead Technology signs agreement to acquire specialist subsea dredging technology business

Ashtead Technology, the international subsea rental equipment and solutions specialist, is pleased to announce it has signed a sale and purchase agreement to acquire the entire share capital of WeSubsea AS ("WeSubsea") on a cash free, debt free basis, for total consideration of NOK 65 million (£5.6m), subject to adjustment for normalised working capital.  The Consideration will be paid in cash on the date of completion, which is expected to be during Q4 of 2022.

Founded in 2010, WeSubsea is a specialist in subsea dredging technology solutions supporting customers globally from its operating base in Aberdeenshire, UK.  The business generated revenues of £1.9m, Adjusted EBITDA of £1.1m and Adjusted EBITA of £0.9m in FY21.  The purchase is expected to be earnings enhancing and exceed the Company's cost of capital in its first full year of ownership.

This will be the Group's sixth acquisition in the past five years, demonstrating its commitment to growing its capability and service offering through M&A to support customers' operations globally. 

Allan Pirie, Ashtead Technology's CEO, said: "WeSubsea is a pioneering technology business with an excellent reputation and strong customer service ethos. Its fleet of high-performance dredge systems and strong technical know-how will be a great strategic fit for our business and will complement our extensive range of dredging, cutting, coating removal and ROV tooling solutions and services.

"The acquisition underlines our ambition to be a global leader in IMR and decommissioning through providing one of the widest subsea equipment and service offerings in these fields to support our customers operations across the offshore energy sector.  This is a great example of a business which has predominantly supported the offshore oil and gas market but can be repositioned into the offshore renewables space through leveraging Ashtead Technology's international network."

For further information, please contact:

Notes to editors:

Ashtead Technology is a leading subsea equipment rental and solutions provider for the global offshore energy sector.  Ashtead Technology's specialist equipment, advanced-technologies and support services enable its customers to understand the subsea environment and manage offshore energy production infrastructure.

The Company's service offering is applicable across the lifecycle of offshore wind farms and offshore oil and gas infrastructure.

In the fast-growing offshore wind sector, Ashtead Technology's specialist equipment and services are essential through the project development, construction and installation phase. Once wind farms are operational, Ashtead Technology supports customers with inspection, maintenance and repair ("IMR") equipment and services.  In the more mature oil and gas sector, Ashtead Technology's focus is on IMR and decommissioning.

Headquartered in the UK, the Company operates globally, servicing customers from its nine facilities located in key offshore energy hubs.

Upon publication of this announcement, this information is now considered in the public domain.