HSS sells its power rentals division

UK rental company HSS Hire has agreed to sell its ABird and APEX Generators power rentals business to CES Global for £23.25 million.

The power business generated £34 million in revenues for HSS in 2022, with operating profits of £6 million. HSS said £20 million of the revenue was generated through its online marketplace business which will continue to be provided under a post-deal cross-hire agreement with CES.

HSS, which acquired Abird in 2012, said it had agreed similar cross-hire agreements following the sale of its access business to Nationwide Platforms in 2019 and its HVAC division to Cross Rental Services in 2021.

CES Global is the European division of US-based CES Power, the events rental specialist. Earlier this year it acquired London-based Fourth Generation, a power rental company specialising in events.

HSS said the deal would reduce its net debt to approximately £37 million and that the combination of a stronger balance sheet and a more streamlined business would allow it to focus more on its strategy “to become a leading marketplace for equipment services through a technology-driven, lower-cost operating model.”

Steve Ashmore, the chief executive of HSS, said; “Over the past three years, HSS has undergone a radical transformation, evolving to become a modern, agile marketplace business. Today’s announcement will increase our focus on driving our strategy forward and delivering value for all our stakeholders.

“Power has made an important contribution to the Group and I would like to thank the team for their commitment over the years. I am very pleased that they will be joining CES, who recognise the business’s value and will help it reach its full potential.”

HSS said trading in 2023 was in line with market expectations with year-on-year revenue growth of 5%; “Whilst we have continued to see some demand softness in certain customer segments, implementation of the group’s marketplace proposition is progressing well with self-service platform adoption accelerating with around 650 customers now having transacted on the platform.”

The company will report its full year results in May.

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