TOKYO — Hitachi Power Solutions Co., Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE: 6501), today announced that it has agreed with Endeavour United Co., Ltd., a Japanese independent investment fund management company, on the transfer of the analysis contract service business of Hitachi Power Solutions, and had concluded a stock transfer agreement.
Specifically, Hitachi Power Solutions will establish a new company on January, 2020, absorb and split the service business to the new company on March 1, and then transfer the shares of the new company to a special purpose company under Endeavour United.
Started in 1971, the analysis contract service of Hitachi Power Solutions has expanded its business centered on analysis contract and research technology consulting, including the analysis, material evaluation, corrosion testing, and strength analysis in environmental and food fields.
Now, the miniaturization of materials and products is advancing, and evaluation of structures and composition at the atomic level is regarded as important.
The analysis contract service that uses scanning transmission electron microscopes equipped with a spherical aberration corrector, has the ability to measure the structure, composition, and chemical bonding condition of materials and devices to a high level of precision, which makes it applicable in a broad range of fields, such as chemical analysis, physical properties evaluation, structural analysis, mechanical testing, corrosion testing, and nondestructive measurement. The service is expected to grow in the future.
As a core company that takes responsibility for the solution business in the energy sector in the Hitachi Group, Hitachi Power Solutions is accelerating the restructuring of its business portfolio through selection and concentration. In the market environment where open innovation is accelerating, in order for the analysis contract service business to continue developing, growing, and meeting expectations from customers for mid-to-long term, Hitachi Power Solutions reached the following conclusion. It should involve Endeavour United, an investment fund management company that has top-level Japanese investment achievements in supporting formulation and implementation of growth strategies for medium-sized enterprises and supporting the structure building associated with the split of business departments. Then it should make use of their expertise to operate a business beyond conventional schemes as a dedicated service company, aiming at mid-to-long term growth.
As a dedicated analysis contract service company, the new company will take advantage of a broad customer base accumulated through strong technological power and reliability, and will maintain and strengthen its superiority through management resource inputs and continued technological innovation, aiming at business expansion.
With this business transfer, Hitachi Power Solutions will increase its focus on the Social Innovation Business combining Operational Technology (OT), Information Technology (IT), and products, pertaining to the equipment and maintenance of social infrastructure that requires high reliability and security.
The impact of this transfer of shares on the business results of Hitachi Ltd. for this fiscal year is minor.