Leipzig City Council Approves the Sale of perdata to arvato Systems

Bid Wins Over City Council

Gütersloh, Germany, 26 January 2012 – On 25 January 2012, the Leipzig City Council voted to sell 100 percent of its shares in the IT company ‘perdata Gesellschaft für Informationsverarbeitung mbH’ to arvato Systems GmbH. With this vote, arvato Systems, a subsidiary of Bertelsmann AG, is poised to assume ownership of perdata, subject to the approval of the antitrust authorities.

The Europe-wide bidding process concluded with arvato Systems emerging as the winner. The bid submitted by arvato Systems fulfilled the three criteria established by the City Council. The bid was financially attractive, with a purchase price offer of €18.05 million. arvato Systems submitted a robust strategic approach for perdata, and also provided contractual assurance that the jobs and the associated added value would remain in Leipzig. arvato Systems will guarantee that the company headquarters remain in Leipzig for at least eight years, and will also enter into an agreement ensuring job security for the over 180 employees.

Matthias Moeller, Managing Director of arvato systems Technologies, says: “We are excited about Leipzig! In the long term, we anticipate that Leipzig will develop into our center of excellence for power companies across the German-speaking countries. Maintaining a close customer relationship with the companies in the LVV Group is an important component of our development approach. Furthermore, we are committed to working together as partners.” The Executive Board of perdata, Thomas Nautsch and Dr. Percy Dahm, also see the sale as a great opportunity for the future growth of the Leipzig-based IT service provider and its employees.

The IT solutions provided by perdata are critical to the success of the public utilities industry. “We trust that perdata will continue to provide its usual high-quality services to the Stadtwerke Leipzig Group (Leipzig’s public utilities company) in a cost-effective, reliable, and highly flexible manner, even after its acquisition by arvato Systems,” says Raimund Otto, Executive Director of Stadtwerke Leipzig.

The proceeds from the sale of perdata have strengthened the financial and investment position of the LVV Group. “This sale forms an important component of the overall strategic realignment strategy for the LVV Group. The sales proceeds create opportunities for the LVV Group on behalf of the city in terms of debt reduction, investment in the core business, and sustainable financing for public transit,” says Josef Rahmen, Chairman of the Board at LVV.

About arvato Systems
As a subsidiary of arvato AG, the provider of outsourcing services within Bertelsmann AG, arvato Systems designs complete value-added chains. The systems integration services provider has been involved in successful projects for well-known companies in a variety of business areas for over 30 years. In 2010, 1,700 dedicated employees at 25 global locations generated sales of over €230 million.

About perdata
perdata is a wholly owned subsidiary of Stadtwerke Leipzig, Leipzig’s public utilities company, and provides a full range of IT services throughout Germany specializing in IT solutions for public utilities. perdata generates approximately 70 percent of its revenues through these activities. This focus on regional public utilities complements perdata’s core services involving the planning, provision, hosting, and operation of SAP-based systems. During the 2010 fiscal year, perdata generated revenues of €22.3 million.

About Stadtwerke Leipzig
Stadtwerke Leipzig GmbH is the leading electricity and heating provider in Leipzig, and also conducts successful business activities in Germany and Poland. The multi-utility company’s range of business activities includes energy distribution, wholesale, generation, supply networks, and energy-related services and investments. In the last several years, Stadtwerke Leipzig has continued to consolidate and extend its position in the energy market. In 2010, 1,127 employees generated revenues of €3.155 billion.

About LVV
The management holding company Leipziger Versorgungs- und Verkehrsgesellschaft mbH (LVV) manages and oversees the City of Leipzig’s power, water, and sewage treatment utilities, as well as its public transportation system. LVV is wholly owned by the City of Leipzig. LVV has full ownership of Stadtwerke Leipzig, which in turn currently has full ownership of perdata.

arvato Systems
An der Autobahn 200
D-33333 Gütersloh

Marcus Metzner
Head of Marketing Services & Communication
Phone: +49 5241 80-88242
Fax: +49 5241 80-9568
press@arvato-systems.de

This release was published on openPR.