EU clears OCS acquisition of Mitie for £3.1 billion
Key Facts
OCS Group's acquisition of Britain's Mitie has received European Commission competition clearance, according to the companies' announcement on October 21, satisfying the European condition for completing the deal. The purchase of Mitie is valued at £3.1 billion, equivalent to $4.17 billion, according to Reuters' coverage of the acquisition agreement announcement. The companies said in the regulatory update that the deal had received "European Commission clearance, thereby satisfying the European condition". OCS is owned by U.S. private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, according to Reuters, bringing together a private equity-backed buyer and its listed rival Mitie. The national security and UK competition conditions still needed to be satisfied when the European clearance announcement was issued, alongside the remaining requirements for completing the acquisition.
Under the offer terms, Mitie shareholders will receive cash consideration of 218.5 pence per share, according to the company's firm offer announcement. The terms also allow shareholders to retain a final dividend of up to 3.1 pence per share without a corresponding reduction in the agreed cash consideration for the acquisition. The deal received approval from the required number of Mitie shareholders on September 16, 2026, according to OCS's half-year update, before the announcement that the European competition condition had been satisfied. When the acquisition agreement was announced, Mitie shares jumped more than 39%, according to Investing.com's coverage, in a move linked to the agreement announcement at the time. The same coverage reported that Mitie suspended its £100 million share buyback programme with immediate effect following the acquisition agreement.
Figures in the offer announcement show that the companies' combined revenue totalled about £8.5 billion for the calendar year ended December 31, 2025. OCS said in its half-year update that combining the companies would broaden the group's expertise across the sectors it serves and its geographic reach. The group described the anticipated business as having "broader sector expertise and greater geographic reach", among the reasons for combining the operations. As for Mitie's standalone performance, the company reported a 10% rise in revenue for the first quarter of its financial year 2027 to £1,406 million. The company compared this with £1,282 million in the corresponding quarter of its financial year 2026, according to its quarterly trading update. In the same update, Chief Executive Phil Bentley said the acquisition of Marlowe had "expanded our capabilities in facilities compliance", pointing to the expansion of Mitie's operational capabilities through that deal.
In Britain, the Competition and Markets Authority closed its initial invitation to comment on OCS's acquisition of Mitie on September 29, 2026, according to the authority's deal review page. The authority had not launched its formal investigation or set a start date or a deadline for a Phase 1 decision. The acquisition scheme also requires court sanction, according to Mitie's scheme document, leaving that sanction among the steps required to implement the agreement. The document expects the acquisition scheme to become effective during the first quarter of 2027, subject to the conditions being satisfied or waived where permitted. The deal documents set July 21, 2027 as the contractual deadline for completion, separate from the expected period for the scheme to become effective. Ahead of those two milestones, Mitie plans to announce results for the first half of its financial year 2027 on November 19, 2026, according to the company's published financial calendar.