WINDHOEK – A wholly owned Namibian firm private equity Eos Capital through its Allegrow Fund is set to acquire various stakes in the Eco Group of companies that are majority owned by successful local entrepreneur, Bernd Izko. The acquisition is subject to approval from the Namibian Competition Commission.
The stakes are in a bid to build large scale water and engineering services firm.
Eco Group is well known for service excellence in the mining, food and beverage, and power generation industries. It is comprised of three related companies, namely EcoTech, EcoValves and EcoGroup Admin.
EcoTech offers high tech process control and instrumentation solutions. EcoValves is mainly focused on selling industrial valve solutions and EcoGroup Admin is a shared services center aimed at relieving engineers of administrative duties to channel their focus on what they are good at, which is finding the right technology solutions for their customers.
Eos Capital’s Chief Investment Officer Ekkehard Friedrich said they are pursuing a buy and build strategy that started with Heat Exchange Products for water treatment, then Valco Pipes for bulk water solutions and now they are pleased to add more valuable pieces to this puzzle with this investment. The investment is seen as a step closer to offer a world class engineering solution to Namibians and also to compete on the international level.
“Our aim is to build a scaled water and engineering services firm and Eco Group will fit in squarely with strong offerings in process instrumentation, valves and an established shared services platform that can be leveraged across the group and beyond. With this addition, we are one step closer to being an all-Namibian firm that is able to offer a world class engineering solution to Namibians and compete with international players who have dominated this landscape for some time,” said Friedrich.
Eos Capital was ranked by Emerging Markets Private Equity Association’s (EMPEA) as one of the top deal makers in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2016 and has invested in five Namibian companies to date. Eos Capital’s objective is to contribute to the growth of the Namibian economy through the management of private equity funds, as well as a partner for companies looking for financing in Namibia.
The firm further indicated that Izko will still remain on board as Group CEO for another two years. Izko will implement new growth initiatives such as the local assembly of valves and providing technology support services for clients in a quest to drive local value addition.
“We are passionate about strengthening the Namibian industry and believe in providing a solid future for all our employees and particularly the Namibian youth” Izko said.
Izko concluded that upskilling and incentivising employees has always been at the center point of their strategy and will be doing more of this going forward within the bigger envelope. “This is the legacy we would like to leave our country and its people,” added Izko.