Schneider Electric Nears £9.4 Billion Aveva Buyout in One of Year's Biggest UK Deals

Aaron Kirchfeld and Dinesh Nair, Bloomberg News

(Bloomberg) -- Schneider Electric SE is nearing an agreement to buy out minority shareholders of Aveva Group Plc in a deal valuing the industrial software developer at about £9.4 billion ($10.6 billion), people with knowledge of the matter said.

The French industrial conglomerate is in advanced talks about a potential bid of around £31 per share, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. That would represent more than a 40% premium to Aveva’s closing price on Aug. 23, the last full trading day before Bloomberg News first reported the potential bid.

Schneider, which already owns about 60% of London-listed Aveva, is aiming to announce a deal Wednesday, according to the people. Under UK takeover rules, Schneider has until 5 p.m. Wednesday to announce its plans for a formal bid, unless the deadline is extended.

Deliberations are ongoing, and negotiations could still drag on longer or hit a last-minute snag, the people said. Representatives for Aveva and Schneider declined to comment.

Any transaction would mark the second big cross-border deal between France and the UK in recent months. Paris-listed Eutelsat Communications SA agreed in July to combine with OneWeb Ltd. in a deal valuing the UK government-backed satellite operator at $3.4 billion.

Chief Executive Officer Jean-Pascal Tricoire has been offloading Schneider’s non-core businesses and channeling more investment into areas that help companies with the shift to digitalization. Cambridge, England-based Aveva provides software tools for utilities, oil and gas producers, transportation firms and other companies, according to its website.

Schneider took control of Aveva after agreeing in 2017 to combine its own industrial software business with the British company. Aveva has since bulked up further through acquisitions, buying SoftBank Group Corp.-backed industrial software maker Osisoft in 2020 at a valuation of $5 billion including debt.

Aveva’s original deal with Schneider prevented the French company from boosting its stake for two years after the transaction closed, and capped its holding below 75% for a further 18 months unless certain conditions were fulfilled.