Landis+Gyr, PEP acquire Origin's smart meter business

Origin Energy has sold its smart meter business Acumen to intelliHUB, a joint venture between Landis+Gyr and Pacific Equity Partners (PEP).

The Acumen business includes the existing management and servicing of an already deployed 170,000 meters and a material, long-term contract with Origin Energy for the rollout of additional smart meters across Australia. The parties expect the transaction to close in the coming few months.

The intelliHUB business was established by Landis+Gyr in 2015 in preparation for the mass market rollout of smart meters in Australia under new contestability rules. By acquiring the Acumen business, the combined entity is set to roll out a significant proportion of the estimated 8 million smart meters to be deployed across NSW, Queensland, South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory starting immediately. Landis+Gyr will be contributing both cash and its intelliHUB business with combined equity value of up to AU$75 million.

The joint venture has raised a starting position in excess of AU$500 million of capital to finance the rollout of smart meters in Australia. This comes from a combination of PEP’s new AU$1 billion Secure Assets Fund and a banking consortium of eight leading Australian and global financial institutions.

The business will retain both the intelliHUB and Acumen brands as the combined businesses come together to focus on all facets of residential, consumer and industrial, embedded networks and solar metering services across Australia and New Zealand.

In parallel with the establishment of the joint venture, intelliHUB has entered into a five-year meter supply contract with Landis+Gyr with expected volumes of approximately 800,000 smart meters to be deployed to multiple utility customers across Australia and New Zealand.

Cameron Blanks, Managing Director at PEP, said: “The Australian market is just commencing a major widespread deployment of smart metering technology. This requires experienced partners that are acutely focused on the customer experience and getting the most out of this once-in-a-generation technology refresh. We have partnered with Landis+Gyr and we believe this business will create an independent and differentiated experience for energy retailers, providing an exceptional rollout experience with the global leader in metering innovation.”

PEP and Landis+Gyr were advised on this transaction by Credit Suisse, Highbury Partnership and Ironstone. Baker & McKenzie and Clayton Utz acted as legal advisers.