Bridgelux, a leading developer and manufacturer of solid state lighting (SSL) technologies, today announced it has entered a definitive agreement to be acquired by an investment group led by the China Electronics Corporation (CEC), and ChongQing Linkong Development Investment Company. Established in 1989, CEC controls 61 second-level subsidiaries, including 13 listed holding companies. With over 70,000 employees, CEC is one of the largest IT companies in China, with manufacturing facilities in Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan, Shenzhen, Nanjing, Changsha, and Xiamen. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
"The advances Bridgelux has made over the last 13 years have been instrumental in driving the adoption of energy efficient LED technologies worldwide. Bridgelux has all of the characteristics we look for in an investment, including leading technology, a broad IP portfolio and a globally recognizable brand and channel,” stated Mr. Liu, CEO of CEC. “This investment is an important step toward further aligning CEC and partner assets into a coordinated supply chain built to serve the unique requirements of the solid state lighting market.”
With its existing investments in lighting fixture and lamp manufacturing as well as other IT and consumer electronics technologies, CEC’s captive businesses is expected offer substantial scale and growth for Bridgelux. Additionally, CEC and its affiliates have built technology development and manufacturing operations across the LED supply chain. Alignment with these partners will give Bridgelux a durable, long-term cost advantage, complimenting its existing technology leadership, and will further allow Bridgelux to focus on segment and application level innovations to better serve its customers.
“We are convinced that CEC is the perfect partner to help Bridgelux achieve its next level of growth. Leveraging the momentum of our existing partnerships with CEC affiliates, complimented by a strong supply chain, world-class manufacturing, and chip, packaging and go-to-market capabilities, CEC will help Bridgelux expand its technology footprint and reach more customers globally.” stated Brad Bullington, CEO of Bridgelux.
Following the acquisition, Bridgelux will continue to operate as a standalone company, reporting into CEC through a US subsidiary. Additionally, Bridgelux will spin off its smart lighting business as a new standalone company, Xenio Corporation. Bridgelux and Xenio will be led by the current Bridgelux management team. Xenio will focus on LED module design and manufacturing to address the emerging $135B lighting opportunity in the Internet of Things (IoT) market. The Xenio team most recently made news with the launch of its Xenio Point, Xenio Link, and Xenio Power products at the Lightfair International Exhibition in New York. Long term, Xenio will benefit from close technology and distribution relationships with Bridgelux as well as CEC and Toshiba.
Bridgelux and CEC expect the acquisition to close within the next six to eight weeks, subject to customary regulatory approvals. After the close, Bridgelux will continue to serve its customers on a standalone basis by continuing forward with its existing products and next-generation roadmap. Over time, Bridgelux expects to see the benefits of its enhanced relationship with the CEC supply chain through an expansion of its product portfolio and a greater ability to serve its lighting customers with an expanded range of new technologies.
