Dublin, 10 April 2024 – Winthrop Technologies Limited (“Winthrop Technologies”), Europe’s leading dedicated turnkey data centre delivery provider, announced today a strategic partnership with funds managed by Blackstone Tactical Opportunities and affiliated funds (“Blackstone”).
As part of the transaction, Blackstone will acquire a 50.7% stake in Winthrop Technologies with the remainder of the shares held between the existing shareholders: Founder, Barry English; Group CEO, Anne Dooley; and Managing Director, Bernard Keane. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The partnership is set to accelerate Winthrop Technologies’ growth trajectory, allowing it to capitalise on the ongoing demand for data centres, the critical infrastructure behind the digital economy. The exponential growth in data driven by the AI revolution and increasing cloud adoption are two major trends powering this explosive growth.
Winthrop Technologies will continue to operate under its brand, and as part of the transaction, the existing leadership will retain a significant minority stake (49.3%), ensuring a continued focus on serving the European data centre market.
Blackstone is aligned with Winthrop Technologies’ growth mindset and will support Winthrop in delivering its current business strategy, continuing additional recruitment for high quality roles to support projects in Ireland and across Europe.
Anne Dooley, Winthrop Technologies Group CEO, said: “The partnership with Blackstone marks a new era of growth for Winthrop Technologies. This is an investment in the company’s leadership, and our team at all levels, who have achieved our strong current market position and will continue to drive Winthrop Technologies into its next phase. Together with Managing Director Bernard Keane, and our senior management team, we look forward to working with the Blackstone team to showcase our best-in-class delivery.”
Michael Cawley, Winthrop Technologies Chair said: “I’m very pleased to welcome Blackstone as a strategic partner for Winthrop’s next phase of growth. Its investment is a strong vote of confidence in the management and staff of Winthrop Technologies who, together, have created Europe’s leading data centre delivery partner. With a shared belief in the strong growth prospects for the sector we look forward to working with our Blackstone partners to build on and expand Winthrop’s number one position.”
Raphael de Botton, Senior Managing Director at Blackstone, said: “We are at an inflection point where we are seeing once-in-a-generation demand for data centres, and we believe Winthrop Technologies will be instrumental in powering this digital infrastructure revolution. This transaction is an example of Blackstone’s long-term conviction in investing in this megatrend, and we are excited to partner with Winthrop’s management team as they embark on their next phase of growth.”
Mathieu Cransac, Managing Director at Blackstone, said: “Today, Winthrop Technologies operates across seven European markets, and is a dedicated data centre general contractor in Europe. We are thrilled to partner with Anne Dooley, Bernard Keane, and the entire Winthrop management team to support them in delivering their existing multi-year project pipeline and continue to capitalize on the fast-growing digital infrastructure market in Europe.”