Datatec - UK Acquisition Enhances Relationships Wi
4 December 2006 12:00
DTC
 DTC                                                                             
Datatec - UK Acquisition Enhances Relationships With IBM And HP                 
DATATEC LIMITED                                                                 
(Incorporated in the Republic of South Africa)                                  
(Registration number: 1994/005004/06)                                           
ISIN: ZAE000017745 & Share Code: DTC                                            
("Datatec" or "the Company")                                                    
UK ACQUISITION ENHANCES RELATIONSHIPS WITH IBM AND HP                           
Datatec Limited ("Datatec", JSE and LSE: DTC), the international                
Information & Communications Technology (ICT) group, announces the              
acquisition of certain assets of the CSF Group, namely CSF Solutions Ltd        
(CSF), a UK-based enterprise IT solutions provider, and has also agreed         
terms to acquire from CSF Managed Services Plc the assets of a tier III         
Data Centre in Bracknell. The aggregate consideration for the business and      
assets will be approximately GBP6 million, and will be paid partly in cash      
and partly by the issue of 419,948 new ordinary ZAR0.01 shares in Datatec.      
CSF will be integrated into the UK operations of Logicalis, the Group"s         
international provider of integrated ICT solutions.  Following this             
acquisition, Logicalis UK will have annualised revenues of over $300            
million which will increase the Logicalis Group"s annualised revenues to        
over $800m.                                                                     
CSF, which has annualised revenues of approximately GBP40 million ($78          
million), was founded in 1991 and employs circa 70 staff, from a head           
office in central London and regional offices in Dudley and Warrington. CSF     
plans, deploys and manages enterprise IT solutions, principally based           
around IBM and HP products, supported by a wide range of professional and       
managed services.                                                               
The acquisition of CSF will significantly augment Logicalis" UK operations      
by bringing further scale to its strategic relationships with IBM and HP,       
enhancing its enterprise computing and storage capabilities and bolstering      
its data-centre presence. The transaction facilitates Logicalis acquiring       
IBM z-series mainframe accreditation in the UK, making it one of only a         
handful of organisations to possess this capability on both sides of the        
Atlantic.  The acquisition of CSF"s data centre in Bracknell also               
strengthens Logicalis UK"s managed service capabilities, a key focus for        
growth.                                                                         
Application has been made to the London Stock Exchange for the admission of     
the 419,948 ordinary ZAR0.01 shares to the Alternative Investment Market,       
and to the JSE Limited for the listing of these shares.  Listing on both        
exchanges is expected to become effective on 7 December 2006.                   
Jens Montanana, Chief Executive of Datatec, comments:                           
"When we listed on AIM in October, we stated that we planned to enhance         
Logicalis" service capabilities through a combination of organic                
development and strategic acquisition.                                          
"The acquisition of CSF significantly strengthens Logicalis UK"s market         
position by enabling it to provide a complete ICT offering encompassing         
building both enterprise computing infrastructures and intelligent              
networks, as well as delivering the services and applications that run          
across them."                                                                   
4 December 2006                                                                 
Enquiries:                                                                      
Datatec Limited                                                                 
(www.datatec.co.za)                                                             
  David Pfaff, Group Finance                                                    
  Director                                                                      
  Wilna de Villiers, Group         +27 (0) 11 233 1013                          
Marketing Manager                                                             
College Hill (UK press)                                                         
  Adrian Duffield/Corinna Dorward  +  44 (0) 20 7457 2020                       
Fleishman-Hillard (SA press)                                                    
Michelle de Pons/Lucien Vallun   + 27 (0) 11 548 2000                         
Note to Editors                                                                 
Datatec is an international Information & Communications Technology (ICT)       
group focused on the supply of advanced ICT and the delivery of                 
professional services into the higher growth segments of the global market.     
The Group"s main lines of business comprise the global distribution of          
advanced networking and communications convergence products (Westcon), IT       
infrastructure solutions and network integration (Logicalis) and strategic      
telecommunications consulting (Analysys Mason). Datatec is registered in        
South Africa and its shares are listed in Johannesburg and London.  The         
Group has 2,500 employees around the world.                                     
In the six months to 31 August, the Group reported an increase in revenue       
of 16% to $1.67 billion (2005: $1.44 billion), EBITDA increased by 32% to       
$52,0 million (2005: $39.5 million), operating profit increased by 44% to       
$43.3 million (2005: $30.1 million), and headline earnings per share grew       
to 15.65 cents (2005: 12.02 cents).                                             
Logicalis is an international provider of integrated ICT solutions,             
delivering secure, converged computing and communications infrastructure        
and services which sources it products from OEMs and distributors.              
Logicalis is headquartered in Slough, UK and with operations in nine            
countries in North America, South America and Europe and approximately          
1,000 employees. Logicalis provides the architecture, deployment,               
integration and management of networks and systems to deliver solutions for     
customers. These customers include mid market and large enterprise              
customers. Logicalis is well positioned to continue to play a consolidating     
role in its core markets of the US and UK, and elsewhere. In the six months     
to 31 August 2006, revenue was up 39% to $342.6 million (2005: $247.3           
million) and EBITDA increased 59% to $11.8 million (2005: $7.4 million).        
Date: 04/12/2006 12:00:11 PM Produced by the JSE SENS Department