Vulcain Engineering continues its growth with the support of a consortium of investors led by Ardian, in association with Tikehau Capital and EMZ and supported by Bpifrance, Amundi and the Fonds France Nucléaire, managed by Siparex

Vulcain, the engineering group which specialises in energy transition and life sciences, and employs more than 3,500 people, has announced the exit of its shareholders Equistone Partners Europe and Sagard with a new LBO.

Accompanied by more than 350 employee shareholders, Co-CEOs of Vulcain Frédéric Grard and Alban Guilloteau have strengthened their positions in the group's capital and governance structures. With the help of their long-standing advisor, D&A Corporate Finance, the founding managers steered a limited process that brought together a consortium of leading investors to support the group's exponential growth.

Ardian, a world-leading private investment house, coordinates the consortium with Tikehau Capital, a world-leading private equity player in decarbonisation and EMZ, a specialist in supporting founding managers.

Bpifrance, Amundi Private Equity Funds and the Fonds France Nucléaire managed by Siparex complete the financing round by providing specific expertise.

A pool of banks made up of leading players is financing the deal through senior debt, supplemented by mezzanine financing provided by Eurazeo Private Debt, the group's long-standing partner.

With this transaction, the Group will have access to substantial and diversified financial resources, as well as French institutional shareholders committed to an entrepreneurial approach.

With the support of Equistone and Sagard, Vulcain has expanded rapidly over the past four years, growing from sales of €160m in 2019 to €370m by 2023. The realisation of current external growth opportunities should enable the company to cross the €450m threshold in 2024.

Its positioning as a multi-specialist engineering expert in critical infrastructures allows Vulcain to take advantage of mega-trends linked to the energy transition, with expertise in nuclear power, renewable energies, gas, hydrogen, energy transmission and distribution networks, and railways. The Group’s market opportunity is further bolstered by sovereignty issues in the pharmaceutical industry.

Vulcain’s track record of external growth, with 27 acquisitions made since 2019, has enabled it to strengthen its relationship with its major customers, and to expand its range of high added-value services, as well as its geographical presence. 

It now generates more than 35% of its business abroad, particularly in the UK, Finland, Belgium, Spain, Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden and Germany, as well as in North and Latin America.

The Group's ambition is to continue to expand internationally and deepen its offering in terms of digitising engineering processes and making the most of data relating to facilities and infrastructures, notably through acquisitions.

The ambition of the joint CEOs Alban Guilloteau and Frédéric Grard is to continue to develop their company in line with the convictions and values that drive them. The quality of Vulcain's workforce and the underlying markets open up the prospect of achieving sales of €1 billion under the next strategic plan.

Completion of the transaction remains subject to the usual pre closing conditions for this type of transaction, and in particular to obtain the required regulatory authorisations.

“After a decade of working together, we are delighted to have succeeded in building a multicultural management team within Vulcain and in involving more than 350 employees in our entrepreneurial and shareholder adventure. The consortium of leading investors that we are announcing today is the result of the work carried out by all the group's employees over the last few years, which has enabled Vulcain to become a leading European player in the energy transition.” Alban Guilloteau & Frédéric Grard, Co-CEO's, Vulcain

“Over the last four years, Vulcain Engineering has succeeded in consolidating its positioning driven by trends relating to the energy transition, health & life science, and infrastructure. The group has accelerated its development with us through around twenty external growth operations in France, Europe and the American continent. We are happy to have supported Frédéric Grard, Alban Guilloteau and Vulcain Engineering in its transformation into a true European player. Vulcain's trajectory illustrates what constitutes Equistone's DNA: positively supporting high-quality management teams and supporting their development strategy in France and internationally to become leading players in their sector.” Grégoire Châtillon & Stanislas Gaillard, Equistone Partners Europe

“We have been impressed by the quality of Vulcain Ingénierie's management team and convinced by the group's positioning, which focuses on high-growth sectors driven by the energy transition. We were also impressed by the know-how in terms of external growth and the internationalisation of the group. We will be making the resources of the Ardian platform available to further accelerate the Group's development in its core business, in particular through acquisitions.” Alexis Lavaillote, Managing Director Expansion, Ardian

“We are delighted to make the first investment of our second vintage of private equity strategy dedicated to decarbonisation in Vulcain Ingénierie. This significant transaction gives us the opportunity to support a recognised management team at the head of a resilient group, strongly committed to decarbonisation and European industrial sovereignty. With this private equity strategy focused on decarbonisation, Tikehau Capital is reaffirming its commitment to support the development of a positive-impact offering while helping companies to expand internationally via its global platform.” Emmanuel Laillier, Head of Private Equity, Tikehau Capital 

“We were impressed by the leadership and quality of the management team led by Alban and Frédéric. Vulcain has a fantastic human capital, united by a motivating corporate culture and committed to the crucial issues of the energy transition and life sciences.  We are delighted to join this great entrepreneurial adventure.” François Carré, EMZ