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Caledonia Investments plc (“Caledonia”) is pleased to announce that its portfolio company Bloom Engineering (“Bloom”), a Pittsburgh based premier designer and manufacturer of industrial burners, has been acquired by Wabtec Corporation (“Wabtec”). Wabtec is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: WAB) and is a leading global provider of equipment, systems, digital solutions, and value-added services for the freight rail, transit, mining and industrial sectors.
Caledonia has been invested in Bloom since 1989 when the business was acquired by one of Caledonia’s former portfolio companies. Since 2015, Bloom has operated as a standalone business and has been led by Chief Executive, David Boyce. Over the last decade, Caledonia has worked closely with Bloom as the business has built upon its world-class reputation for high temperature, high efficiency and low emission burner systems. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, USA since 1934, Bloom serves its global customers from subsidiaries in Germany, India, and China and is well positioned to benefit from long-term market tailwinds stemming from decarbonization, energy transition and environmental regulations.
Caledonia will receive net proceeds of c.£33m in cash, net of fees, for the sale of its investment in Bloom.
Commenting on the sale, Tom Leader, Caledonia’s Head of Private Capital, said:
“Caledonia has been a proud owner of Bloom over the decades and we are delighted with what the business has achieved in recent years. Wabtec’s acquisition of Bloom concludes our c.35-year relationship with the business and we are pleased to be selling to strategic partner that will support the next phase of Bloom’s journey. We thank and congratulate Dave and the Bloom team for their stewardship of Bloom during our partnership and wish them all every success under their new ownership.”
David Boyce, Chief Executive of Bloom, commented:
“Caledonia has been a fantastic partner both for me and for Bloom, providing board level support, long-term thinking and constructive challenge. Caledonia’s ability to take a longer-term view on its investment horizon has helped me to lay the foundations for Bloom’s future growth through strengthening my team, supporting investments, and positioning Bloom strategically as a leader in high efficiency – low emission advanced technology combustion solutions.”
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