GE to Acquire Kretztechnik from Medison and Minority Shareholders

In a move to expand its range of ultrasound offerings, GE Medical Systems (Milwaukee, WI, USA) has announced the intention of acquiring Kretztechnik AG (Zipf, Austria), a leading manufacturer of 3-D ultrasound systems. GE has agreed to acquire around 65.4% of the company from majority shareholder Medison Co., Ltd. (Seoul, Korea) for US$ 83.7 million, and will make a tender offer by the end of July for the remaining stock that is held by public shareholders, valuing the whole company at around $145 million. Kretztechnik's board has recommended that shareholders accept the offer. The transaction with Medison and the tender offer are subject to the ability of GE to purchase at least 90% of the total outstanding shares.

Kretztechnik has experienced strong growth over the last several years as a result of several new and innovative product introductions. These include next-generation 3-D utlrasound imaging that allows doctors to view real-time 3-D images of anatomy in motion or, effectively, 4-D imaging. The company, which had around $100 million in sales for the latest 12 months, has subsidiaries in Germany, France, Switzerland, and Spain.

"3-D imaging is one of the fastest growing segments in ultrasound,” said Joe Hogan, president and CEO of GE Medical Systems. "Patients will be the biggest benefactors of the acquisition, because it will allow GE to accelerate the clinical applications of 3-D imaging in the delivery of healthcare.”

Upon the closing of the transaction, GE, Kretztechnik, and Medison will enter into a strategic relationship involving the continued distribution of Kretztechnik products by Medison in certain countries in Asia and the cross licensing of technology between the companies.




Related Links:
GE Medical Systems
Medison