Merger & acquisition (M&A) activity within and across the sustainability market remained steady in November 2023. Indeed, Sustainable Tech Partner tracked 31 M&A deals involving green IT services, renewable energy, climate tech and sustainability during the month.
Related: Search our M&A Database for a List of All Mergers & Acquisitions
Buyers, sellers and investors in November included ESG (environmental, social and governance) consulting companies, renewable energy firms, software providers, technology businesses, private equity firms and plenty more. Still, buyers and investors rarely disclosed deal valuations -- so it's difficult to pinpoint the overall health and investor interest in the sector.
For some context, here's a look at each of the 31 M&A deals that we spotted in November 2023:
1. Environmental Consultants - Trinity Consultants acquired Longman Lindsey: Trinity, a global environmental consulting firm providing services and solutions in the built environment, EHS regulatory compliance, life sciences, and water and ecology markets, acquired Longman Lindsey, a New York-based full-service acoustical consultancy with specialized expertise in the construction industry.
2. Sustainable Mobility - Econolite acquired distribution partner RAI Products: The deal "represents our steadfast commitment to sustainable mobility by providing the industry with the best traffic control technologies and ITS (intelligent transportation systems) solution," said John Rosenblatt, president of RAI.
3. Private Equity and Data Centers - Ardian acquired Verne Global: The seller was Digital 9 Infrastructure. Financial terms of the dal were not disclosed. Digital 9 had been struggling with debt ahead of the deal, Datacenter Dynamics reported.
4. Environmental Services - Celnor Group acquired Brownfield Solutions: Celnor is backed by Inflexion Private Equity. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
5. Green Data Centers - HIVE Digital Technologies acquired a data center in Boden, Sweden: HIVE will pay up to $750,000 in cash and $1.5 million payable in common shares. HIVE Digital Technologies positions itself as the "first cryptocurrency mining company listed for trading on the TSX Venture Exchange with a sustainable green energy focus."
6. Consulting Services- Deloitte Canada acquired Fleet Challenge Canada Inc.: The acquisition expands Deloitte Canada's existing offerings for mid-market and large clients in fleet management, decarbonization, and electrification strategies. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
7. Data Centers - nLighten acquired GYROCenter: nLighten, a sustainable data center company backed by private equity firm ISquared Capital, has acquired GYROCenter, a high-performance data center in Amsterdam. Gyro's carrier-neutral data center procures 100% renewable energy and is proactively managing energy consumption, the buyer said. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
8. ESG Software - LocoSoco Group acquired Qintelligence: LocoSoco Group is acquiring Qintelligence, an AI-powered Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) reporting platform. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
9. Mobility - Loud Mobility acquired Cyclechic: Loud Mobility, a sustainable transport business, has acquired Cyclechic -- an e-commerce business. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
10. Battery Energy Storage System - Pacific Green Battery Park acquired Multiple Italy Energy Projects: Pacific Green Battery Energy Park has acquired 51% in five Italian energy projects from Sphera Energy Srl. The remaining 49% of the shares of each project will be acquired on achievement of certain development milestones, the buyer said.
11. Management Consultancy - Ramboll has acquired Acondas: The acquired business is strategic management consultancy focused on "strategy implementation, encompassing sustainability transformation, value enhancement and transaction advice," the buyer said. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
12. Environmental Consulting - Barge Design Solutions acquired Environmental Consulting & Design (EC&D): The acquired business is a Florida -based consulting firm specializing in environmental permitting, land planning, mitigation banking, land management and geospatial services. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
13. Reverse Logistics - Blue Yonder completed the Doddle acquisition: The buyer gains reverse logistics capabilities that improve sustainability.
14. Environmental Software - Seacloud acquired Meox products: Seacloud, backed by private equity firm Bluefront Equity, has acquired the environmental monitoring products and software suite of Meox.
15. Electric Battery (EV) Technology - Volvo acquired Proterra battery business: Swedish truckmaker Volvo won an auction for the battery business of troubled Proterra in the United States with a $210 million bid, Reuters reported.
16. Consulting and Energy Management - BIP acquired Verco: The acquired business is an energy management and sustainability business providing zero-carbon solutions to customers. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
17. Electronics and Circular Economy - Jabil Inc acquired Retronix: The acquired business is a provider in the reclamation and refurbishment of electronic components. The deal adds to Jabil’s current circular economy services including reverse supply chain management, medical device reprocessing, recycled packaging, and emission reductions. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
18. Solar Projects - Madison Energy Infrastructure (MEI) acquired Pro-Tech Energy Solutions: The acquired business has built "hundreds of distributed solar projects and has recently developed substantial front-of-the-meter assets across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic," MEI said.
19. Private Equity and Consulting - Bain Capital Private Equity acquired Guidehouse for $5.3 billion: Veritas Capital had owned Guidehouse since 2018. Guidehouse offers numerous technology, finance and sustainability services.
20. Solar Energy - CleanChoice Energy acquired a Pennsylvania project: CleanChoice, a farm-to-table clean energy company, has acquired a solar project in Franklin County, Mercersburg, Pennsylvania. This is CleanChoice’s first acquisition as part of its long term ownership strategy. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
21. Energy Storage - EQT acquired Statera Energy: Investment firm EQT is acquiring battery storage firm Statera Energy from InfraRed Capital Partners. Financial terms of the deal were not announced, but sources say the deal was valued at more than £500 million ($620 million), Bloomberg reported.
22. Analytics and ESG Expertise - Straive acquired Gramener: The acquired business is a design-led data science company. Straive is owned by BPEA EQT, a global investment organization. Gramener's expertise spans low-code AI for clients across multiple industries, including Pharmaceuticals & Life Sciences, Logistics & Manufacturing, ESG, and Technology & Consulting.
23. IT Asset Disposition (ITAD) Services - Iron Mountain acquired Regency Technologies: The acquired business is a provider of IT asset disposition (ITAD) services in the United States. Regency Technologies processes over 50,000 metric tons of material annually, reselling more than 2 million units across eight locations spanning the United States. The purchase price was $200 million, and the valuation was roughly 7.5 times annual EBITDA.
24. IT Asset Disposition (ITAD) Services - Closed Loop Partners Acquired Sage Sustainable Electronics: The buyer is a private equity. The acquired business is a circular economy and e-waste management firm.
25. Sustainability Consulting: Schneider Electric finalized the acquisition of EcoAct SAS from Atos Group. The acquired business provides climate consulting and net zero solutions.
26. Electric Vehicle (EV) Technology - Ford acquired Auto Motive Power (AMP): The deal will bolster Ford's charging, battery management and power conversion tech.
27. Environmental Services - Trinity Consultants acquired Waid Environmental: The acquired business is an engineering and environmental services firm specializing in air quality, emissions control, permitting and compliance. The buyer is based in Dallas and the acquired business is based in Austin, Texas.
28. Energy Software - Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners acquired Australia's Energy Exemplar: The acquired business is a provider of energy market software. The seller was private equity firm Riverside Company. The deal was worth more than $1 billion, Reuters reported.
29. Supply Chain Sustainability and Managed Services - Accenture acquired OnProcess Technology: The acquired business is a a provider of supply chain managed services that improve sustainability. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
30. ESG Software - AMCS acquired FigBytes: AMCS, backed by private equity firm Insight Partners, has acquired FigBytes -- which develops software that helps customers track and report on their ESG targets in areas including carbon accounting, climate action, water impacts, and supply chain activities. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
31. Consulting - Anthesis acquired Progressive: Anthesis, a global pure-play sustainability advisory and solutions firm, has acquired Progressive, a growth and innovation consultancy. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Anthesis has acquired five businesses so far in 2023.
Did we overlook or omit an M&A deal? If so, please email me the details. And don't forget to check our M&A database -- which we update regularly.
