GE Vernova agrees to buy Berlin-based grid equipment maker Trench Group from Triton for $9bn
The deal values the former corporate carve-out at 13 times its expected 2028 adjusted EBITDA. Under Triton, Trench doubled revenue to more than €1 billion as grid spending surged.
US energy group GE Vernova has signed an agreement to acquire Trench Group, a Berlin-headquartered maker of high-voltage grid components, from Triton Fund V for a purchase price of $9.0 billion equivalent. GE Vernova said on Wednesday 28 October that it expects to fund the deal equally with cash and debt and to close it in late 2027.
Triton Partners said Trench has doubled its annual revenue to more than €1 billion since becoming independent in April 2024. Reuters reported that GE Vernova announced the deal alongside third-quarter results and raised its full-year revenue forecast for the third time.
The deal
According to GE Vernova, the price reflects 13 times Trench's expected 2028 adjusted EBITDA, before synergies. GE Vernova expects Trench to reach $1.9 billion of revenue at an adjusted EBITDA margin of about 36% in 2028. These are forecasts prepared by GE Vernova from data provided by Trench, and the dollar figures are converted at a EUR/USD rate of 1.12, the company notes.
Closing is subject to regulatory approvals and to consultation with employee representatives where legally required. Until then, the two companies will continue to operate independently, Triton said. Reuters reports that GE Vernova expects $50 million to $100 million of annual cost synergies by 2030.
What Trench makes
Trench designs and manufactures components that sit inside power grids: bushings, instrument transformers, coils, reactors and cable terminations. GE Vernova says it serves more than 800 utilities and hyperscalers and that its components are present in the majority of high-voltage direct current lines built worldwide. The company has more than 3,000 employees and 11 factories in eight countries.
A newly opened Trench plant in Charlotte, North Carolina, is part of the appeal. GE Vernova says manufacturing of 765 kV equipment there is expected to begin in late 2027. Trench also brings about $5 billion of backlog and framework agreements, some of which reach into the next decade, chief executive Scott Strazik said in the release.
Triton's carve-out story
Trench was a corporate carve-out when Triton bought it. Since then, Triton says, the company has passed €2 billion in order intake and €1 billion in revenue, created more than 800 new jobs and completed three bolt-on acquisitions. It also invested heavily in its production network, including the US plant. Triton says this is its fourth exit in Germany in 18 months, after FläktGroup, Kelvion and the sale of its remaining RENK shares.
"Our partnership with Triton has been highly valuable and has enabled our company's accelerated growth," Trench chief executive Bahadir Basdere said in Triton's statement. Strazik said Trench's technology and customer relationships are "key enablers of the modernised, resilient grid required to keep pace with the electricity supercycle".
The bigger picture at GE Vernova
Reuters reports that GE Vernova raised its 2026 revenue forecast to $46.5 billion to $47.5 billion, from $45.5 billion to $46.5 billion. Orders rose 96% to $29.3 billion in the quarter, Electrification revenue rose 51% and the backlog reached a record $197 billion. The company also doubled its share buyback authorisation to $20 billion. Its shares were down more than 3% in trading, Reuters said.
What it means for founders and investors
The price shows how much value now sits in grid hardware. Utilities are spending to replace ageing networks and to connect data centres and electrified industry, and buyers are paying for manufacturing capacity and long order books. A carve-out that doubled revenue in about two and a half years and sold for $9 billion is a strong case study for private equity in industrial technology.
For startups, grid bottlenecks are an opportunity. Companies building software for grid planning, sensors and monitoring, manufacturing automation or alternatives to SF6 gas sell into the same customer base. Large component makers with full order books need partners that help them produce faster and manage assets better.
For European investors, the deal is also a reminder that many of the region's most valuable industrial assets end up in US hands. Germany keeps the factories and the headquarters for now, but strategic control moves abroad. More deals are tracked on our Funding page, including LSEG's agreement to buy Octus and Valmet's deal for Tieto's pulp and paper software unit.
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