Bridgepoint acquires dialysis care group Gambro Healthcare
Gambro Healthcare, the dialysis care services division of Swedish Gambro Group, the global medical technology company, is to be acquired by European private equity firm Bridgepoint from EQT and Investor for an undisclosed sum.
The business is the second largest corporate provider of dialysis care services in Europe with 155 clinics in 14 countries serving 12,000 patients and with ancillary businesses in South America and Australia. In the current year to 31 December 2007, Gambro Healthcare is expected to generate turnover of SEK 2.3 billion (€246m) and EBITDA of SEK 446 million (€48m). It was formerly part of the Gambro Group which was the subject of a €4.3 billion take private from the Stockholm Stock Exchange in July 2006.
Gambro Healthcare opened its first clinic in 1991 in Lund, Sweden. The company treats patients suffering from end stage renal disease who must undergo dialysis treatment on a regular basis (on average 150 treatments a year) to eliminate toxins and fluids arising from failing kidney function. According to Rob Moores, partner at Bridgepoint, Gambro Healthcare is one of the few dialysis care platforms of scale in Europe and represents a rare opportunity to acquire a business that provides a vital service to patients unable to secure a kidney transplant.
“This is a business in a growing but fragmented sector with significant potential. With further investment Gambro can accelerate organic growth in existing clinics as well as further greenfield expansion and develop its focus on smaller bolt-on acquisitions. The share of the dialysis market operated by privately-owned clinic businesses, currently around 40% in Europe, should also increase as national healthcare systems move to more efficient outsourced solutions.”
Bridgepoint estimates that a combination of factors will drive demand for the services offered by companies such as Gambro Healthcare, most notably the increase in lifestyle diseases such as diabetes, obesity and hypertension. The worldwide dialysis patient population grew by 6% to 1.5 million in 2006 and is estimated to grow to over 2 million by 2011.
Bo-Inge Hansson, CEO of Gambro Healthcare, added: “There are significant opportunities to expand our footprint in Europe where we are experiencing increasing volumes for our services. With the support of an informed investor such as Bridgepoint, we can now take our already proven model to a new stage in its development.”
Bridgepoint has been a significant investor in the European healthcare sector: Attendo, the largest provider of services and products for older and disabled people in the Nordic region (sold December 2006), Medica, one of France's largest private operators of nursing homes (sold July 2006), Alliance Medical, Europe's leading provider of outsourced diagnostic imaging services, Swisscaps, Europe's No 2 contract manufacturer of capsules/tablets and Tunstall, the market leader in alarm-based telecare systems for the elderly and infirm.
The transaction is subject to normal competition clearance. Advisers involved in this transaction included: for Bridgepoint - Rothschild and Evli (corporate finance), LEK (market due diligence), KPMG (financial, tax and operations due diligence), Marsh (insurance) and Linklaters (legal); for the vendor: Goldman Sachs (corporate finance), Bain (commercial), KPMG (financial), Vinge (legal), Aon (insurance) and Deloitte (tax).