NOSA acquired by The Carlyle Group
Global alternative asset manager, The Carlyle Group, announced that it has agreed to acquire the NOSA Group from MICROmega Holdings for approximately R750 million. The transaction is expected to be concluded in the first quarter of 2018, subject to regulatory approvals and other conditions.
NOSA is a provider of occupational health, safety and environmental risk management services and solutions. The company was formed in 1951 to address the reduction of injuries and fatalities in the workplace.
In 2005 the company was acquired by MICROmega Holdings. Today, NOSA has 50 offices across southern Africa, China, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and is the exclusive provider of both the NOSA Five Star Grading System and SAMTRAC.
“NOSA has experienced strong growth over the last decade, annually educating and servicing more than 90 000 individual learners and professionals, and more than 4 000 organisations, to ensure a safe and compliant working environment in emerging markets around the world. The investment by Carlyle Group will support the ongoing growth of NOSA while allowing us to realise value for our shareholders.
“We are also pleased to announce our appointment of Andy Fenn as CEO-Designate for NOSA. Fenn will assume the full CEO role once the transaction has been finalised and the necessary approvals have been obtained,” says Greg Morris, CEO of MICROmega.
Eric Kump, managing director and head of Carlyle’s Sub-Saharan Africa Fund, says: “The acquisition of NOSA demonstrates our view that sub-Saharan Africa is an attractive investment market. We believe the occupational health and safety sector is particularly attractive across emerging markets as adoption and compliance rates align with developed countries. We look forward to using our experience in the business services sector as well as our global network to support NOSA’s strong brands to grow additional markets.”
Equity for this transaction will come from the Carlyle Sub-Saharan Africa Fund; the ninth investment to be made by the fund.