ABB to sell Baldor's generator-set business assets to Generac Holdings
08 Oct 2013
Swiss engineering giant ABB today said that it will sell all the assets of Baldor's generator-set business to Generac Holdings.
ABB did not reveal the financial terms of the deal, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2013.
The Zurich-based company said that it is divesting the generator-set business because of limited synergies with its core portfolio and because Generac is in a better position to create additional value from the business.
The business was acquired as part of ABB's $4.2 billion acquisition of Baldor Electric in 2010, and accounts for about 3 per cent of Baldor's total sales. (See: ABB to acquire electrical motor maker Baldor Electric for $4.2 billion)
Baldor's generator-set business produces in its facility in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, a broad line of portable, standby, prime power and peak-shaving generators, natural gas or diesel for every power requirement.
''The divestment is in line with our strategy to continuously optimize our portfolio and to focus our efforts on driving profitable growth in our core automation and power businesses,'' said ABB CEO, Ulrich Spiesshofer. ''Overall, the fit between ABB and Baldor is excellent, as we are seeing from the value that has already been created.''
Baldor CEO, Ronald Tucker, added that the transaction would benefit both firms employees and customers. ''This sale will allow Baldor to focus on industrial electric motors and mechanical power transmission products in line with ABB's core portfolio, while enabling the generator-set business to become part of a company solely focused on the manufacturing, distribution and sales of these types of products.''
Based in Wisconsin, Generac is a designer and manufacturer of a wide range of generators and other engine-powered products.
It is a leader in power equipment serving residential, light commercial, industrial and construction markets, and its power products are available internationally through a broad network of independent dealers, retailers, wholesalers and equipment rental companies.