Onex Corp. ONEX-T is selling a minority stake in Texas-based Advanced Integration Technology to the Qatar Investment Authority, the country’s sovereign wealth fund.
Founded in 2002, AIT builds automation technology for manufacturers in the aerospace industry, serving customers such as Boeing Co. and Lockheed Martin Corp. Onex, Canada’s largest private equity firm, invested in the company in 2014, but did not disclose the size of its stake or the amount it paid.
“We’ve been deliberate in our choice of partner and are excited for this next chapter in our history,” AIT chief executive officer Ed Chalupa, said in a press release. “Our ability to attract high-quality investors is testament to the critical role automation technology is playing in restoring factory production rates, easing cost pressures and enabling industry product launches after a two-year pandemic disruption.”
The Qatar Investment Authority holds an estimated US$300-billion in assets. The AIT deal is the sovereign wealth fund’s fifth investment in 2022.
“We’re excited to partner with AIT,” said QIA CEO Mansoor bin Ebrahim Al-Mahmoud. “We continue to target value-added growth businesses in automation and productivity-enhancing industries globally.”
Onex did not disclose the value of the stake it sold. In 2019, Bloomberg reported that Onex was mulling a sale for around US$1.5-billion.
AIT is one of three aerospace companies in Onex’s portfolio. It owns a 50-per-cent stake in U.S.-based aircraft leasing company BBAM, and owns WestJet Airlines Ltd., which it acquired in 2019 for $5-billion.
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Jaren Kerr