The Latest Mergers and Acquisitions Activity in the Turbomachinery Industry

Companies across the energy technology sector, from designers and manufacturers to aftermarket specialists, are consistently searching for ways to expand their market share and enter new energy industries. Completing mergers and acquisitions (M&A) allows these organizations to showcase a wider category of proprietary technologies before a larger audience, breaking new ground on specific components and software and combining expert teams from across the industry.

Baker Hughes, Rotating Machinery Services (RMS), and GE Vernova have finalized several transactions since late July, all of which complement their expansive portfolios with differentiated products and solutions, such as:

• Liquid gas supply chains
• Flow control components
• Magnetic filtration systems
• AI computer vision

Baker Hughes Acquires Remaining Chart Stock and Continental Disc

Through a signed definitive agreement, Baker Hughes agreed to purchase all outstanding shares of Chart Industries’ common stock at $210 per share or a $13.6 billion total enterprise value. With complete ownership, Baker Hughes now benefits from Chart’s design, engineering, and manufacturing of process technologies and equipment, mostly geared toward gas and liquid molecule handling.

“This acquisition is a milestone for Baker Hughes and a testament to our financial execution and strategic focus as we continue to define our position as an energy and industrial technology company,” said Lorenzo Simonelli, Baker Hughes Chairman and CEO. “We know Chart well, having worked alongside them on many critical energy infrastructure projects. Their products and services are complementary to our offerings and aligned with our intent to deliver distinctive and efficient end-to-end lifecycle solutions for our customers across their most critical applications.”

Oxygen, nitrogen, and argon tanks at Chart location | Image Credit: Chart

Currently, Chart’s products and solutions span the entire liquid gas supply chain, including engineering, design, installation, preventive maintenance, repair and service, and digital monitoring. Baker Hughes also gains access to 65 manufacturing facilities and over 50 service centers globally. The company’s primary offerings in rotating equipment, flow control, and digital technology combine well with Chart’s heat transfer, air and gas handling, and process technologies.

“The combination positions Baker Hughes to be a technology leader that can provide engineering and technology expertise to meet the growing demand for lower-carbon, efficient energy and industrial solutions across attractive growth markets such as LNG, data centers and new energy,” added Simonelli.

In addition, Baker Hughes acquired Continental Disc Corp. (CDC) in an all-cash, $540 million transaction in early August to expand its product line within the valves and flow control markets. CDC contributes its critical pressure management solutions to Baker Hughes’ Industrial & Energy Technology segment.

RMS Acquires Psicon BV

RMS recently acquired a Netherlands-based company that specializes in compressor modernization, rotating machinery upgrades, and magnetic filtration systems: Psicon BV. “We are thrilled to welcome Psicon into the RMS family,” said John Bartos, CEO of RMS. “Psicon’s commitment to engineering excellence aligns with our mission to provide comprehensive solutions for rotating equipment. This acquisition enhances our global footprint and allows RMS to offer a broader range of services to our clients.”

Psicon is known for quality engineered products and services within the power and oil and gas industries, such as:

• Performance upgrades for gas and steam turbines/components
• Design and manufacturing of spare parts like cylinder assemblies, rotors, impellers, diaphragms and Sundyne/Sunflo pumps and compressors
• Overall aftermarket service capabilities

Psicon tool truck | Image Credit: RMS

In addition, the company produces magnetic filtration technologies like the CYCMAG filters. These units merge tangential cyclones with magnetic separators to extract ferrous contaminants from liquid and gas streams. Psicon’s engineering capabilities—3D scanning techniques supported by software tools for flow-path calculations, pressure analysis, and finite element analysis—align well with RMS’s scanning, measuring, modeling, analyzing, and testing practices.

RMS now absorbs Psicon’s working relationships with local manufacturing facilities, which feature CNC machinery and balancing departments, further strengthening the company’s global service strategy. Psicon will maintain its operational headquarters in Zoetermeer, Netherlands.

“Joining forces with RMS marks an exciting new chapter for Psicon,” said Frank Koper, president and founder of Psicon. “Our combined expertise and resources will enable us to deliver even greater value to our customers worldwide. We look forward to leveraging our shared strengths to drive innovation and growth.”

GE Vernova Acquires Alteia SAS

GE Vernova acquired Alteia SAS, a France-based software company specializing in AI computer vision and machine learning, to bolster its AI capabilities and give utilities visual data solutions that provide situational intelligence and actionable insights.

This acquisition further integrates visual and operational data into GridOS Visual Intelligence from core systems to provide an enhanced level of situational awareness. Continued advancements for AI-workflows will build on the insights delivered to help utilities reduce the probability of catastrophic events and enhance resiliency with expedited damage assessments to rebuild and restore the grid.

“With this acquisition, we are excited to increase our investment in a critical element of our GridOS offering,” said Scott Reese, CEO Electrification Software at GE Vernova. “Together with the Alteia team, whose expertise will help to advance our AI- and data-centric vision for GridOS, GE Vernova will be able to solve for critical pain points that our utility customers face every day and help them use visual data and AI in an actionable way to prevent disruptions or restore power quickly."