Agility announced that it has finalized its acquisition of UK-based John Menzies PLC and will combine the business with its National Aviation Services (NAS).

"Once integrated, the combined company will operate as Menzies Aviation and will be the world's largest aviation services company by the number of countries and second largest by the number of airports served," Agility said in its announcement.

 Photo: Menzies

Operating as Menzies Aviation, the combined company will provide air cargo services, fuel services, and ground services at airports on six continents.

 £763M deal closed on March 30

The boards of Agility and Menzies reached an agreement on March 30 on Agility's cash offer to acquire 100% of Menzies's ordinary shares, which traded on the London Stock Exchange, for 608 pence a share.

The deal values Menzies at approximately £571 million (US$693 million) on a fully diluted basis and approximately £763 million (US$927 million) on an enterprise value basis.

Agility said the combined revenues of Menzies and NAS exceeded US$1.5 billion in 2021 and will have approximately 35,000 employees and operations at 254 airports in 58 countries, handling 600k aircraft turns, and 2 million tonnes of air cargo, and 2.5 million fuelling turns per year.

"Menzies and NAS will create the world leader in aviation services," said Hassan El-Houry, who becomes Chairman of the combined company, having previously held the role of NAS CEO. 

"We will have the scale and resources to expand and grow as the industry recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic," El-Houry added.

The company's customers will include Air Canada, Air China, Air France-KLM, America Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, EasyJet, Emirates, Ethiopian, FlyDubai, Frontier Airlines, IAG, Jazeera, Qantas Group, Qatar Airways, Southwest, Turkish, United Airlines, WestJet and Wizz Air. 

Further growth eyed

"Agility's backing gives us the resources to provide innovative solutions for growing and forward-thinking customers and to develop our talent, technology, and sustainability ... It also means we are well-positioned to support our customers in tackling supply chain challenges and labor shortages," said Philipp Joeinig, Menzies Aviation CEO who will also serve as CEO of the combined company.

Tarek Sultan, Agility vice chairman noted that by acquiring Menzies and combining it with NAS, Agility has the opportunity to unlock greater value in both.

"Agility has a strong track record of sustainable and responsible growth over the last two decades, driven both organically and through mergers and acquisitions, and this latest deal is part of our strategy to further accelerate that growth," Sultan said. "For Agility, this deal creates the largest owned and operated – 'controlled' - business in Agility's portfolio by revenue, headcount, and global presence."