The deal has been valued at $11.8 billion
Eaton corporation, the US industrial equipment manufacturer, has agreed to buy Cooper Industries, including Cooper Lighting and Safety, in a deal valued at $11.8 billion.
Both companies will operate under the Eaton brand out of Ireland, where Cooper is incorporated, when the deal is expected to be passed in the second half of 2012.
Sandy Cutler, Eaton’s chief executive who will lead the new company, said in a statement that the deal will provide Eaton with access to Cooper’s “diversified component brands, global reach and international distribution”, a mix that will be a “game changer” in the global power industry.
Eaton Corp is parent to well-known brands in the UK such as power control and distribution company Moeller and electrical equipment manufacturer MEM. Cooper Industries is parent company to Cooper Lighting and Safety, one of the UK’s largest lighting manufacturers.
Eaton said the purchase provides it with a platform for growth in power solutions that encompass primary and secondary distribution, grid automation and smart grid technologies but also lighting, lighting controls and wiring devices.
These technologies will help it take advantage of the increased spending being seen in energy and infrastructure and aging power infrastructure, the company said.
