IHS to acquire Seismic Micro-Technology for $500 million

IHS Inc, a business information services and analysis company, yesterday said that it will acquire Seismic Micro-Technology (SMT), a provider of geoscience software and data to the oil and gas industry, for $500 million in cash.

In the largest deal in IHS' history, the acquisition will increase the ability of IHS to offer geoscience software and data products to customers in the energy sector, which is already its focus area.

Based in Houston, Texas and with offices in Calgary, London, Dubai, Moscow, Rio de Janeiro and Singapore, SMT's geoscience software helps energy companies find oil and gas faster.

The company's Kingdom software, which is used by 3,000 companies in over 95 countries, is used to find sources of  oil & gas in the subsurface and is used by 85 per cent of the 150 largest petroleum exploration and production companies.

SMT's customer base includes international and national companies as well as independent companies and consultants. More than 50 per cent of sales come from international sales.

NYSE-listed IHS is a leading source of information and insight in sectors that include energy and power; design and supply chain, defence, risk and security, environmental, health and safety and sustainability, country and industry forecasting, and commodities, pricing and cost.