ABB to Acquire Rotork for $5.5B, Expanding Data Center Automation

ABB expands field-device capabilities with Rotork acquisition

ABB has agreed to acquire Rotork, a UK-based flow control and actuator specialist, in a cash transaction valued at approximately $5.5 billion in enterprise value. The deal positions ABB to deliver more integrated automation solutions for mission-critical infrastructure, including data centers that rely on precise control of cooling, power, and process systems.

Rotork shareholders will receive 503 pence ($6.75) per share in cash, representing roughly a 60% premium over the company's three-month average share price. The transaction values Rotork at an EV/Sales multiple of around 5.3 times and an EV/EBITDA multiple of approximately 19.5 times for 2025, though ABB expects the EBITDA multiple to decline toward the mid-teens once synergies materialize.

Rotork generated approximately $1 billion in revenue in 2025 with an adjusted operating profit margin of 24.6%, having achieved 8% average annual organic revenue growth between 2022 and 2025.

Why it matters

Data center operators face mounting pressure to optimize cooling efficiency and power management as AI workloads drive unprecedented infrastructure demands. This acquisition gives ABB direct access to field instrumentation that sits at the edge of industrial control systems—the sensors and actuators that provide real-time feedback from physical equipment. For hyperscale and colocation providers managing thousands of control points, tighter integration between sensing devices and automation platforms could translate to faster response times and more granular operational visibility.

Strategic fit in the automation stack

ABB characterizes the acquisition as extending its reach into what it calls the "sense-control-act" loop—the continuous cycle of monitoring, decision-making, and adjustment that underpins modern industrial automation. Rotork's instrumentation technology operates at the field-device layer, where physical processes are measured and controlled.

"ABB has followed Rotork over many years, and we admire the execution excellence, engineering quality and customer trust that Rotork's teams deliver each day," said Morten Wierod, ABB's CEO. He emphasized that the transaction will expand ABB's automation offering at the field device layer while Rotork continues to operate with its existing entrepreneurial approach.

The acquisition is expected to add roughly 3% to ABB's overall revenues and 12% to its Automation business area revenues, with immediate accretion to operational EBITA margins.

Operational continuity and UK presence

Rotork will operate as a separate division within ABB's Automation business area under ABB's decentralized operating model, which grants divisions autonomy over operational decisions. ABB has indicated no current plans to materially alter Rotork's UK manufacturing and technology base. The company already employs more than 1,700 people in the UK.

Dorothy Thompson, Rotork's Chair, said the board unanimously recommends the offer, noting that ABB's decentralized structure will benefit the business and its stakeholders.

Transaction mechanics

ABB will fund the acquisition using existing cash resources, which stood at approximately $5.8 billion as of June 30, 2026, along with committed bank facilities. The company also expects to draw on around $4.8 billion in net cash proceeds from the sale of its Robotics business to SoftBank, targeted to close in the second half of 2026.

The transaction will proceed through a court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement under the UK Companies Act 2006. Completion is expected in the first half of 2027, pending shareholder approval and regulatory clearances.

These details were first reported by Data Centre Magazine.