Inaer-Bond changes name to Avincis

[Thorond0r]

World Helicopters, owner of Bond and Inaer has changed name


www.avincisgroup.com


Will it make any difference for the ones working for the lowest paying subsidiary (inaer)? I wish but don't think so

[helihub]

Not to be confused with the Romanian wine company who currently make up 90% plus of the Google searches on the word Avincis

http://www.ziuaconstanta.ro/images/stories/2012/06/06/poze/vinul.jpg

[TRC]

Or a Japanese car (as pronounced by a Kiwi).

I thought that was worth posting, until I saw it written down...

[Harry the Hun]

Is this the cunning way of entering the accident statistics with a zero?

[tistisnot]

Oh you wotten thynik. :=

[Ludolf]

Ha ha ha ha TRC, so true.

[Savoia]

Change possibly in the wind for Avincis

It is thought FTSE 100 Index-listed Babcock is looking to buy a significant stake in Avincis, while a well-known national Sunday paper reported plans for a takeover that would see it pay £1 billion and take on £500 million of debt.

The group said a deal with Avincis would help it expand in the UK and overseas, but stressed there was no certainty the talks would lead to a transaction.

Engineering giant Babcock in talks with world's biggest helicopter operator | Herald Scotland (http://www.heraldscotland.com/u/u/engineering-giant-babcock-in-talks-with-worlds-biggest-helicopter-operator.1385304391)

[212man]

Looks like it's confirmed:
Acquisition of Avincis Group ? March 2014 (http://270314.babcockinternational.com/)

[Bravo73]

This link is slightly easier to access:

http://www.avincisgroup.com/news-landing.aspx?code=146&name=PROPOSED+ACQUISITION+OF+THE+AVINCIS+GROUP

[meanttobe]

Lots of news from Avincis today.

Avincis to buy Scandinavian Air Ambulance for ?80 Million | Helihub - the Helicopter Industry Data Source (http://helihub.com/2014/03/27/avincis-to-buy-scandinavian-air-ambulance-for-e80-million/)

[26500lbs]

CHC (or parts of) next perhaps? I have heard they are going cheap at the moment!

[terminus mos]

Hmm, I suppose that "Cock Copters" will distinguish it from Bristow and CHC in terms of public recognition.

[Support Monkey]

Babcock International announces imminent plans to purchase Avincis | Business | The Guardian (http://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/mar/27/babcock-international-announces-plant-purchase-avincis)

Another name change?

[Bravo73]

As Bill said, "What's in a name? etc etc"

[mtoroshanga]

Why did the British government let this sort of thing happen. Bristow was taken over by the worst helicopter company in the world- American I may add. In Nigeria when I worked there, I was asked by a senior oil company executive who now ran Bristow I replied Air Logistics to be told that his company would never have contemplated a contract with them. I suspect Bond have a similar situation- we should never have let American companies into our situation! Waiting for your reply SAS.

[Bravo73]

Huh?

Babcock are headquatered in London, listed on the London Stock Exchange and it's board is littered with CBEs and a GCB (ie Brits!)

How much more 'British' do you want?

[mtoroshanga]

They were not involved when the incidents occurred!! I rest my case, as soon as accountants and jobs worths get involved its always the same. Hold onto your hats in Middle Wallop!!!!

[Bravo73]

They were not involved when the incidents occurred!! I rest my case, as soon as accountants and jobs worths get involved its always the same. Hold onto your hats in Middle Wallop!!!!

Are you posting in the correct thread? :confused:

Your points don't seem to have any relevance to the thread topics.

[meanttobe]

http://www.avincisgroup.com/news-landing.aspx?code=154&name=RECEIPT+OF+REGULATORY+APPROVALS+FOR+PROPOSED+ACQUISITIO N+OF+THE+AVINCIS+GROUP

[Thorond0r]

New owner to sit on the Iron Throne June 1st in Inaer Spain. Will they cut some Kkr's heads? We've had like 4 HR managers in the past 2 years, every single one of them asking for time to get to know the company. I guess they did because we've suffered 20-30% income cut. Here we go again...

[meanttobe]

From the Avincis Q 4 2013 statement dates 29/4/14
This is probably the reason you have taken a hit on your terms and conditions. Unionised V non unionised employee groups all within the one company.



If our workers engage in a strike, work stoppage or other slowdown, other employees elect to become unionized, existing labor agreements are renegotiated, or future labor agreements contain terms that are unfavorable to us, we could experience a disruption of our operations or higher ongoing labor costs, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

[meanttobe]

KKR flipped Avincis for good money

http://www.unquote.com/southern-europe/analysis/2339269/deal-in-focus-investindustrial-and-kkr-sell-avincis-for-eur21bn


http://www.unquote.com/IMG/948/286948/helicopter-rescue-web-370x229.jpg?1397207017 Earlier this month, KKR enjoyed a 25% IRR and a 2.5x money multiple on its first post-crisis investment in Spain with the sale of Avincis Group to Babcock. Amy King takes an in-depth look at the exit
Investindustrial and KKR agreed to sell Avincis, a supplier of helicopter and fixed-wing emergency services, to UK engineering services firm Babcock in late March. The deal, which gave the firm an enterprise value of €2.1bn, was the final chapter in a buy-and-build strategy that highlights the strengths of the Spanish acquisition.
The services provided by Avincis include medical emergencies, search and rescue, fire-fighting, surveillance and civil protection. The firm also supplies offshore crew-change helicopter services to the oil and gas industry in the North Sea and Australia. Founded in Spain, the firm now operates in Italy, France, Portugal, the UK, Norway, Australia and Ireland. It has a fleet of 350 aircraft and employs 3,000 staff.
Get to the chopper
The asset first fell into private equity hands in 2005 when Investindustrial acquired a 75% stake in World Helicopters, the holding company of Avincis (then named Inaer) for €205m. Ariadne, Emisys Capital and Oquendo Capital provided mezzanine financing to support the deal, according to unquote" data.
Fast-forward five years and Investindustrial mandated JP Morgan to find a buyer for a 50% stake (http://www.unquote.com/southern-europe/news/1602336/investindustrial-look-inaer-investor) in the company, with a refinancing also under consideration. At the time, fellow international GP behemoth KKR was looking for a way into post-crisis Spain, having completed a handful of deals in the market in the boom years.
The GPs entered discussions with the firm's management, which was considering an auction, before eventually opting to see KKR take a 49% stake (http://www.unquote.com/southern-europe/news/1603465/kkr-acquires-49-stake-inaer) and a refinancing post investment. The decision enabled Investindustrial to stay on board and profit from the firm's future growth trajectory.
Cleared for take-off
The GPs then embarked on a fierce buy-and-build strategy, bolting on nine firms. One such target saw Avincis acquire Bond Aviation in 2011 for €300m, including a debt package provided by Lloyds TSB. At the time of KKR's investment, the firm had an enterprise value of €700m, which had tripled by the time of divestment, thanks to both acquisitive and organic growth.
The consolidation also saw the firm move to the UK, where it was renamed Avincis Group. In 2010, Italy and Spain accounted for 90% of the firm's business; by the time of exit, the UK had overtaken southern European markets, perhaps unsurprising given the UK government's leaning towards outsourcing contracts to private businesses such as Avincis. By the end of 2013, the firm's order book had grown to €2.3bn – a 30% increase on the previous year.
Around two years ago Babcock entered the stage as a partner, working alongside Avincis on the UK search and rescue outsourcing contract – a tender process that lasted around a year. Though Avincis missed out on winning the contract, in part since its balance sheet was weaker than that of other bidders, the tender process was not fruitless; the long partnership between Babcock and Avincis led to discussions of a more formal relationship, which ranged from a stronger partnership to pursue further contract opportunities outside the UK, to the full acquisition of Avincis.
The firm's private equity backers initially intended to retain a stake in the asset, for which they were also considering a flotation under the guidance of Deutsche Bank. However, it soon became clear that Babcock's favoured strategy was the full acquisition of the asset.
After around six months of discussions regarding deal structures and parameters, an agreement was reached, subject to approval at Babcock's general meeting in April as well as regulatory clearances. KKR is understood to have enjoyed a 25% IRR and a money multiple of around 2.5x. For the GP, which recently opened a Madrid office (http://www.unquote.com/southern-europe/news/2326465/kkr-opens-madrid-office), the Spanish acquisition proved profitable even in a country at the epicentre of the financial crisis.
People
Investindustrial – Andrea Bonomi
KKR – Mattia Caprioli
Advisers
Vendor – Hogan Lovells, Ed Harris, Leanna Moezi, David Harrison (Legal); Bank of America Merill Lynch (Corporate finance); Deutsche Bank (Corporate finance).