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Winnipeg Free Press
05-08-2025
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
‘We want what's best for rural Manitoba'
WINKLER — By the time he was a teenager, Hank Wall had built his own computer using components he found at a thrift store. When he was in high school and there weren't enough teachers available, he taught computer classes to his peers. At the age of 16, he started a computer repair and IT business called Constellation Computers he ran for more than a decade. 'I love technology,' says Wall, 40. 'I love knowledge (and) I love learning.' But when he was running Constellation Computers, Wall continually ran into a problem that impacted not just his business but rural Manitobans everywhere. 'We had crappy internet,' Wall says, remembering how slow and insufficient the service was. 'It didn't need to be. The technology existed (to make it better).' Today, Wall is the chief technology officer at Valley Fiber Ltd., a company he co-founded in 2016 with Mike Wolf, chief financial officer, and Conley Kehler, executive director of strategic partnerships. Headquartered 115 kilometres southwest of Winnipeg in Winkler, the telecommunications infrastructure company specializes in the development, construction and operations of fibre and fixed-wireless infrastructure for residential and commercial use. Valley Fiber has a special interest in reaching communities that were previously under-served, Kehler says. 'We want what's best for rural Manitoba,' he says. 'We didn't want to give rural Manitoba what everybody else had. We wanted to give rural Manitoba (something) better than everybody else.' Valley Fiber is building a cutting-edge fibre optic network. The company's competitors, Kehler says, will send a single strand of fibre into a neighbourhood that is potentially split between 32, 64 or even 128 customers, impacting the speed at which their internet runs. Valley Fiber, on the other hand, runs a single strand to each of its customers. Kehler compares it to the telephone system going from party lines to individual lines. 'No one is on a shared network,' he says. 'No one.' One of the company's earliest projects was with the City of Winkler. In 2017, the city paid Valley Fiber $500,000 to hook up every civic building and donated about 1.5 acres to build the company a headquarters and data centre. In return, Valley Fiber provided free installation for every house and building in Winkler not owned by the city. It took the average internet speed from five megabits per second to 1,000. Bandwidth has only expanded from there. 'It will be like going from working the field with a horse and wagon to working the field with a new John Deere tractor,' Martin Harder, then-mayor of Winkler, told the Free Press in March 2017 after the city made the agreement. In 2020, Valley Fiber attracted a majority investment from Dutch-based private equity firm, DIF Capital Partners, allowing for significant growth. Today, Valley Fiber's network stretches as far north as Gypsumville, as far east as Sprague, as far south as Emerson and as far west as Ninette. The company delivers dedicated connectivity for homes and businesses — including internet, TV and phone options — to 40,000 customers in more than 200 communities. In 2023, PC Magazine named Valley Fiber the fastest internet service provider in the province. The company started with 10 staff members and now employs around 350. That includes 100 people who work at Valley Fiber's call centre, located a five-minute drive from the company's headquarters. If customers have a problem, their call is answered by someone in Manitoba, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, year-round. Mike Breiter, director of IT for the City of Morden, can attest to the difference using Valley Fiber's services makes. In 2019, the city issued a request for proposal seeking an internet provider to bring high-speed internet to the region. Valley Fiber was among the applicants and after being chosen, the company got to work. The company invested $10 million for dedicated fibre lines in Morden, and the city invested $850,000 for its own network. Breiter says prior to Valley Fiber, he felt like he was living in the 1990s when it came to using the internet. He had a DSL connection that, if he was lucky, provided him four megabits of bandwidth. He could barely stream anything, much less use any type of video communications. He laughs when asked what difference being on Valley Fiber's network has made for individual customers and the city as a whole. 'It's really opened a lot of doors for Morden, in terms of businesses,' Breiter says. 'Internet and IT structure has become a more critical component of a lot of businesses these days. Now we have the infrastructure to support those businesses when and where needed.' Whether they're connecting with friends or streaming a television series, having high-speed internet has also given residents a better user experience when they're online, Breiter adds. Breiter calls Morden's partnership with Valley Fiber 'one of the best decisions we have ever made' and describes the company's IT professionals as some of the most talented he has met during his 25 years in the industry. 'I was initially worried about whether they could deliver on some of their promises and they have always delivered above and beyond every contractual agreement we had,' Breiter says. For Wall and Kehler, Valley Fiber's partnership with Morden is an example of why the company exists. 'I'm a very firm believer that we're all here to make the world a better place — otherwise, what's the point, right?' Wall says. 'My way of making the world better is by offering better connectivity … This is my way of helping my neighbours.' Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. Kehler believes Valley Fiber has made the keystone province a better place to live. 'We have changed how people live and can live and do live, and we've done it with technology that has been harnessed in Manitoba,' he says. 'We've done it with Manitoba people and we've done it for Manitoba.' The company is looking forward to serving more customers in the years to come, Kehler adds. 'Our technology continues to change, our product continues to change (and) our growth continues,' he says. 'We're going to expand well past the points that we're at now.' Aaron EppReporter Aaron Epp reports on business for the Free Press. After freelancing for the paper for a decade, he joined the staff full-time in 2024. He was previously the associate editor at Canadian Mennonite. Read more about Aaron. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. 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New Straits Times
01-08-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
Inari, Sanan jointly acquire Lumileds International for RM1.03bil
KUALA LUMPUR: Inari Amertron Bhd and Sanan Optoelectronics Co Ltd have jointly acquired 100 per cent equity interest in Lumileds Holding BV (Lumileds International) and its 11 Asian and European subsidiary companies for an enterprise value of US$239 million or equivalent to RM1.03 billion. Inari said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia that the company together with Sanan today entered into a share purchase agreement (SPA) with Dutch-based Lumileds Subholding BV for the proposed acquisition. Lumileds International was incorporated on Oct 30, 2014 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands and is a globally recognised leader in the LED industry, specialising in the production and sales of mid-to-high-end LED products. "The proposed joint acquisition will strengthen Inari group's existing captive business strategy while enabling the company to expand and enhance its current product portfolio. "This strategic move will allow Inari group to diversify its product offerings and customer base, thereby creating additional revenue and earnings streams," it said. Inari had also entered into collaboration agreement (CA) and shareholders' agreement (SHA) with Sanan for the purpose of regulating the respective rights and obligations in Lumileds International and the relationship with one another upon completion of the proposed joint acquisition. It said a special purpose vehicle will be incorporated in Hong Kong (HK SPV) and co-owned by Sanan (74.5 per cent) and Inari (25.5 per cent), either directly or indirectly through their respective wholly owned subsidiaries, and the HK SPV will undertake the proposed joint acquisition. In addition to the capital contribution towards the payment of the enterprise value, Inari and Sanan have agreed to inject a further estimated US$41 million (RM176.3 million) into HK SPV and/or Lumileds International for working capital purposes. This brings the total investment outlay for the proposed joint acquisition and estimated working capital to US$280 million (RM1.2 billion).
The Star
01-08-2025
- Business
- The Star
Inari, Sanan jointly acquire Lumileds International for RM1.03bil
KUALA LUMPUR: Inari Amertron Bhd and Sanan Optoelectronics Co Ltd have jointly acquired 100 per cent equity interest in Lumileds Holding BV (Lumileds International) and its 11 Asian and European subsidiary companies for an enterprise value of US$239 million, or equivalent to RM1.03 billion. Inari said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia that the company, together with Sana,n today entered into a share purchase agreement (SPA) with Dutch-based Lumileds Subholding BV for the proposed acquisition. Lumileds International was incorporated on Oct 30, 2014 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands and is a globally recognised leader in the LED industry, specialising in the production and sales of mid-to-high-end LED products. "The proposed joint acquisition will strengthen Inari group's existing captive business strategy while enabling the company to expand and enhance its current product portfolio. "This strategic move will allow Inari group to diversify its product offerings and customer base, thereby creating additional revenue and earnings streams," it said. Inari had also entered into a collaboration agreement (CA) and shareholders' agreement (SHA) with Sanan for the purpose of regulating the respective rights and obligations in Lumileds International and the relationship with one another upon completion of the proposed joint acquisition. It said a special purpose vehicle will be incorporated in Hong Kong (HK SPV) and co-owned by Sanan (74.5 per cent) and Inari (25.5 per cent), either directly or indirectly through their respective wholly owned subsidiaries, and the HK SPV will undertake the proposed joint acquisition. In addition to the capital contribution towards the payment of the enterprise value, Inari and Sanan have agreed to inject a further estimated US$41 million (RM176.3 million) into HK SPV and/or Lumileds International for working capital purposes. This brings the total investment outlay for the proposed joint acquisition and estimated working capital to US$280 million (RM1.2 billion). - Bernama
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First Post
31-07-2025
- Automotive
- First Post
Bigger than Jaguar Land Rover acquisition, Tata Motors to take over Italian auto giant Iveco
Tata Motors is closing in on a landmark $4.5 billion deal to acquire Italian truckmaker Iveco from the Agnelli family's Exor. If finalised, the deal would mark the Tata Group's second-biggest acquisition and would be significantly larger than its $2.3 billion buyout of Jaguar Land Rover. read more Bigger than Jaguar Land Rover acquisition, Tata Motors to take over Italian auto giant Iveco. Image: Reuters Tata Motors is set to acquire Italian truckmaker Iveco in a $4.5 billion deal from the Agnelli family's holding company, Exor, The Economic Times reported. If sealed, it would mark the second-largest acquisition in Tata Group's history, behind only its $12.9 billion takeover of Corus in 2007, and the most significant yet for its automotive division. The Indian carmaker had earlier acquired Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) in 2008 for $2.3 billion. The boards of Tata Motors and Turin-based Iveco are expected to meet Wednesday to approve the transaction, with a formal announcement anticipated the same day. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Defence, core businesses under separate talks Iveco on Tuesday confirmed that it is in 'advanced discussions' with multiple parties over two separate deals, one involving its defence business and the other covering its core operations. The company had earlier stated plans to spin off or divest its defence arm by the end of 2025, and has received interest from potential buyers. Besides trucks, Iveco manufactures buses and engines, and is currently valued at about $4.9 billion. Exor, the investment firm of the Agnelli family, holds a 27.1 per cent stake and 43.1 per cent voting rights in the company. Tata Motors is reportedly being advised by Morgan Stanley, while Goldman Sachs is representing Exor and Iveco. Legal counsel is being provided by UK-based Clifford Chance. According to ET, Tata Motors plans to route the transaction through a Dutch-based special purpose vehicle (SPV) fully owned by the company. Negotiations have been underway for six weeks, with both parties now working under an exclusivity agreement that expires on August 1. National scrutiny likely in Italy Despite being a recognised commercial vehicle maker in Europe, Iveco is the smallest among the continent's major players, behind Volvo, Daimler, and Traton. Its frequent presence on M&A watchlists stems from this relative size, although its defence division has often complicated potential deals. Any major acquisition involving Iveco is likely to come under Italy's 'golden power' regulations, which enable the government to intervene in sales involving companies deemed strategically important to national interest. Iveco employs around 36,000 people globally, including 14,000 in Italy.
Business Times
25-07-2025
- Automotive
- Business Times
STMicro to acquire part of NXP Semiconductors' sensor business for US$950 million
[SINGAPORE] STMicroelectronics (STMicro) has entered into an agreement to buy part of Dutch-based NXP Semiconductors' sensor business for up to US$950 million. The deal would expand STMicro's portfolio of micro-electromechanical systems (Mems) sensors, which includes automotive safety products as well as sensors for industrial applications. In 2024, the NXP unit generated about US$300 million in revenue, with gross and operating margins both 'significantly accretive' for STMicro. The transaction is also expected to be accretive to the chipmaker's earnings per share from completion, it said in a statement. The Mems sensors portfolio to be acquired primarily targets automotive safety sensors – such as for airbags and vehicle dynamics – and monitoring sensors, such as for engine management. It also includes pressure sensors and accelerometers for industrial applications. 'STMicro is well-positioned to leverage strong, established customer relationships with automotive Tier 1s with its innovation road map in a rapidly expanding Mems automotive market,' it said. The planned acquisition will enhance STMicro's Mems technology, as well as product research and development capabilities and road map. Once completed, the expanded business will take advantage of STMicro's integrated device manufacturer model for Mems, enabling faster innovation cycles and greater flexibility for customisation. The deal is for a purchase price of up to US$950 million in cash, consisting of US$900 million to be paid up front and US$50 million to be paid subject to the achievement of technical milestones. The transaction will be financed with existing liquidity and is expected to close in the first half of 2026.
