The Ergon fund buys Satlink, the former March satellite business
This is the first important divestment carried out by Artá since the departure of the Marches from the management company last June. The company has a turnover of close to 55 million euros, of which 30% comes from the Spanish market, and a gross operating result (ebitda) of 21 million. Among its clients it has well-known companies such as Nueva Pescanova, Balfegó or Salvamento Marítimo. The cutting-edge technology that it develops has been one of the aspects that has most attracted investors to participate in the competitive auction, coordinated by PJT Partners, with three candidates reaching the final phase: Ergon itself, Platinum and Orbcomm.
The same sources indicate that it has been one of the most competitive processes in the second half of 2021 after receiving almost twenty letters of interest for the company from a varied profile of investors: from venture capital funds, national and international, as others companies in the sector. Satlink is a world leader as a technology provider in the fishing business and markets buoys with satellite communications. The same sources indicate that the amount paid by the buyer would value the company in a price range of between 200 and 250 million euros.
In addition to its great technological potential, the strong international growth potential of the firm has also played in favor of the transaction, which began its expansion outside the Spanish borders in 2006 with the opening of an office in Seychelles. Later it came to the American continent with the aim of growing in Latin America through Ecuador. It currently also has an office in Fiji.
Artá Capital, the former venture capital manager of the Marches, became a shareholder of this company in 2017, taking a majority stake and it is the second divestment to close in the last twelve months, after the sale of the largest Spanish distillery ( Alvinesa) to the British fund Intermediate Capital Group (ICG). It should be remembered that Corporación Financiera Alba left the manager last June, in such a way that it began to function as an independent company managing assets worth 800 million euros.
