firm ends
talks on
takeover SCIENCE company AEA Technology, the privatised part of the former state-run Atomic Energy Authority, has broken off talks that could have led to a takeover of the company.
The engineering and science business, which employs more than 1,000 people at Harwell and Culham, revealed in April that it had received takeover approaches.
At the time it said it thought none of these would be likely to lead to an offer that reflected its value.
AEA added it was confident it could create more value for shareholders by speeding up its business reorganisation, a move announced in November, to see it focus on two markets, rail and environment.
Yesterday, it said had agreed to sell its nuclear engineering business to NUKEM Nuclear, part of Germany's energy and telecoms Tessag group, for £23.7m.
AEA is also in talks to sell its engineering software business Hyprotech. It added that the sale of its nuclear consulting arm was proceeding well.
Shares in the group sparked 17 per cent after the update, rising 36p to 257p.
The firm has been under pressure after three profit warnings in two years, the latest in February.
Last month, more than 130 staff employed by Nuclear Technology at Harwell to carry out safety work on nuclear fuel were told their business will shut down over the next three years.
Engineering Software's 150 Harwell staff recently moved into a £4m headquarters custom-built by ProLogis Developments. They previously operated from several buildings on the Harwell site, but these are now old and one, Hangar 8, is due to be demolished.
The former Atomic Energy Authority was the last major privatisation by the Tory Government in 1996. The non-profitable part of the business became UKAEA and remained in the public sector. Since then AEA Technology has moved away from nuclear work into general science and consulting.
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