HSH acquires Associated Cold Stores & Transport for £16.5m
The acquisition of ACS&T will expand HSH’s – a part of Constellation Cold Logistics – strategic presence across the UK, increasing the company’s storage capacity to include ACS&T’s facilities in Grimsby, Tewkesbury, and Wolverhampton and grow the company’s storage offering to around 140,000 pallet positions.
In addition, the logistics firm’s offering of temperature-controlled distribution services will grow to 75 LGV (large goods vehicle) lorries – when including both HSH and ACS&T’s existing fleets.
Closing the deal
The transaction is expected to close on 10 January 2023, with no conditions to completion save for the lapse of time.
Camellia said the proceeds of the sale would be applied to investing in its core agriculture operations and general working capital purposes.
The group also announced that it would be relocating its head office to a recently refurbished investment property owned by it and located in Wrotham, Kent.
Commenting on the acquisition, HSH managing director Anthony Howard said: “The acquisition will provide a unique opportunity for HSH to expand its storage and distribution services for our new and existing customers.
20-year milestone
“Having co-founded HSH nearly 20 years ago, I am extremely proud to see how our company has grown over the years and would like to extend my gratitude to our team on reaching this milestone. I look forward to collaborating with the team at ACS&T to accelerate our growth and develop new high quality cold chain solutions.”
ACS&T reported revenues of £13m and recorded a profit before tax of £600k for the six months ending 30 June 2022. As of 30 June 2022, the gross assets attributable to the business were £33.6m and net assets attributable to the business were £14.8m.
Camellia expects to record a gain on the sale of ACS&T (net of expenses) in the current financial year of approximately £3.7m.
