SIME DARBY BUYS CATERPILLAR DEALER
NZ$211m acquisition is group’s largest deal since 2017’s restructuring exercise
SIME Darby Bhd has acquired New Zealandbased Gough Group Ltd in its largest deal since the pure-play restructuring exercise in 2017.
Gough Group owns the Caterpillar dealership with service territory in New Zealand.
Sime Darby’s subsidiary, Sime Darby (NZ) Holdings Ltd, yesterday entered into a conditional sale and purchase agreement with privately owned Gough Holdings Ltd to acquire a 100 per cent stake in Gough Group for NZ$211 million (RM572 million).
Sime Darby group chief executive officer Datuk Jeffri Salim Davidson said the transaction, which would be its largest since the 2017 restructuring exercise, was set to provide a rare opportunity for the group to enhance its relationship with Caterpillar, and gain exposure to New Zealand’s construction and forestry sectors.
He said this also further reinforced Sime Darby Industrial’s
footprint in Asia Pacific.
“Gough Group’s transport and material handling portfolio will complement Sime Darby Motors’ commercial truck business in New Zealand, enabling growth in after-sales operations and broaden our suite of franchises, essentially strengthening our position in Australasia,” said Jeffri Salim in a statement yesterday.
Sime Darby said the transaction would be fully funded by bank borrowings on a cash-free and debt-free basis and was subject to New Zealand’s Overseas Investment Office approval and the typical completion conditions.
The deal was expected to be completed by September 30, it added.
The New Zealand dealership had a rich history spanning 90 years, making it one of the oldest dealerships of Caterpillar equipment outside of the United States, according to Sime Darby.
Gough Group’s transport and materials handling businesses spanned across the construction, infrastructure, transport and power system industries, distributing a wide range of premium global brands such as SAF, Palfinger and Wabco in New Zealand and Australia, it said.
Currently, Gough Group employs about 950 people across a network of more than 50 locations in Australia and New Zealand.
Gough Group grew its revenue by more than 18 per cent to NZ$540 million last year, compared with the previous year, driven by improvements in sales for both its Caterpillar and transport and material handling businesses.
In Australia, Sime Darby is represented by Hastings Deering, one of Caterpillar’s leading dealers, as well as through Sime Darby Motors’ dealerships for BMW, Volvo, Ferrari and Rolls Royce in Brisbane and Porsche in Sydney.
In New Zealand, Sime Darby Motors operates under the Continental Cars and City Nissan dealerships in Auckland, representing brands such as BMW, Porsche, Volkswagen, Audi, Ferrari and Nissan.
It also has a commercial transport arm representing brands such as Volvo, Hino, Mack and UD Trucks.