On the evening of March 10, Groupe Gorgé entered into exclusive negotiations with the shareholders of iXblue to acquire 100% of the company’s capital. This major strategic project marks a turning point in the history of Groupe Gorgé and will create a world-class player in cutting-edge technologies for critical applications, notably in the Defense, Space and Maritime sectors. This merger values the new ECA Group-iXblue entity at approximately €800 million.

The key points of the transaction:

• The creation of a French group with critical size and technological leadership ;
• A strong complementarity of customers, technologies and solutions offered;
• A rapprochement facilitated by similar corporate cultures and strong geographical proximity;
• A combined backlog ECA Group-iXblue of over €620 million.

Combination of ECA Group and iXblue: emergence of a French technology champion providing very high performance solutions for critical missions iXblue is a high-tech company recognized worldwide for its advanced solutions in navigation, maritime autonomy and photonics for the civilian, space and defense markets. iXblue’s technologies enable its customers to meet their challenges in harsh environments, from the bottom of the ocean to the edge of space. The company is based in France and has been very successful since its creation in 2000, especially internationally. It now has nearly 750 employees and sales in over 60 countries. ECA Group is a subsidiary of Groupe Gorgé since 1992, owned at 100%. The company is one of the world leaders in the field of autonomous robotics and integrated systems, particularly in the Naval sector. The company provides its customers with the most efficient and technologically advanced solutions in the field of naval, land and air drones. ECA Group also offers innovative technological solutions for the Aeronautics and Space sectors.

The combination of ECA Group and iXblue will create a major player in the French DTIB1, which will rank among the world’s top players in the following fields:

• Maritime autonomous systems, in particular for underwater mine countermeasures ;
• Very high performance inertial Navigation solutions;
• Photonic, Quantum and Space Solutions. It will also be a major player in land robotics, underwater acoustics, simulation, naval equipment and aeronautical equipment.