Hogan Lovells advises KBR on its c.$400m acquisition of Frazer-Nash Consultancy from Babcock

KBR delivers science, technology, and engineering solutions to governments and companies around the world and employs approximately 29,000 people worldwide with customers in more than 80 countries and operations in 40 countries.   

Frazer-Nash Consultancy is a leading provider of systems engineering, assurance and technology advisory services to solve the world’s most complex challenges. Its talented team provides a broad range of professional advisory services across the defense, energy, and critical infrastructure sectors primarily in the UK and Australia. With expertise in areas such as systems engineering, data science, cyber, and clean energy, Frazer-Nash is highly complementary with KBR’s global priorities but has minimal overlap because of its geographic footprint.

The acquisition will expand KBR’s advisory and consulting platform, with Frazer-Nash Consultancy well positioned to capitalise on structural growth and emerging opportunities in areas such as data science, digital, cyber, security, and climate change. The acquisition builds on a track record of successful integrations and acquisitions, many of which Hogan Lovells has advised on, demonstrating KBR’s ability to capitalise on long-term market dynamics to enhance capabilities and geographic reach.

A definitive agreement in respect of the acquisition has been entered into and the transaction is expected to close in the third or fourth quarter of 2021, subject to certain regulatory approvals.  

The Hogan Lovells team was led by London-based corporate M&A partner Sarah Shaw supported by senior associate Charles Jemmett and Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C.-based KBR client relationship partner Carine Stoick. Support was also provided by Hogan Lovells’ Sydney team led by partner David Holland. 

Commenting on the transaction, Sarah Shaw said: “It has been a real pleasure to advise KBR on this exciting, fast-moving transaction which demonstrates Hogan Lovells’ ability to co-ordinate lawyers across jurisdictions and time zones and to execute cross-border M&A deals in highly regulated sectors under tight timescales”.