By David Dykes

GE Current, a Daintree company, said it has entered into a definitive agreement with Hubbell Incorporated to acquire Hubbell’s commercial and industrial lighting business, based in Greenville, S.C.

Hubbell (NYSE: HUBB) said the agreement calls for the company to sell its Commercial and Industrial Lighting business to GE Current for a cash purchase price of $350 million, subject to customary adjustments with respect to working capital and net indebtedness. 

The business designs, manufactures and sells LED lighting and control solutions for commercial and industrial customers and generated approximately $515 million in sales in 2020.

The Hubbell C&I lighting business has a collection of brands including Area Architectural Lighting, Beacon, Litecontrol, Kim, Columbia, Prescolite, Alera, Dual-Lite, Compass, Hubbell Outdoor Lighting, and Hubbell Controls Solutions.

"Today’s announcement is a win for the industry, combining two leading companies with over 150 years of innovation. We intend to use our combined resources to drive new investments that create solutions for the continuously evolving needs of our customers," said Manish Bhandari, CEO, Current. "The values and customer-centric culture of the Hubbell C&I lighting business are well aligned with Current."

“This strategic transaction creates a more focused Hubbell portfolio with higher growth and margin characteristics, and enables us to continue effectively executing on our core strategy of providing reliable and efficient critical infrastructure solutions for electrical and utility applications,” said Gerben Bakker, Hubbell's chairman, president and chief executive officer. “We are confident that Current is the right strategic partner for the business, and that the combination of these two leading businesses with complementary product portfolios will be a win for customers, channel partners, employees and shareholders.”  

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals, and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2022. Hubbell said it expects to deploy net proceeds from the sale to accretive bolt-on acquisitions and share repurchases.

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC is serving as financial advisor to Hubbell, and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz is serving as legal counsel.

After closing, Current and the Hubbell C&I Lighting business will maintain separate agency networks with dedicated resources and distinct brands, Current officials said. 

Both businesses will be able to strengthen their respective portfolios through innovation, leveraging the best commercial tools for speed and driving efficiency through combined scale, the officials said.

Hubbell's corporate headquarters is in Shelton, CT.