Dive Brief:
- Samsung Electronics last week announced it signed a deal to acquire Germany-based FläktGroup, a heating and cooling systems provider that services data centers and other buildings and facilities.
- The electronics giant agreed to spend 1.5 billion euros ($1.7 billion) on FläktGroup to expand and bolster its heating, ventilation and air conditioning business, as the artificial intelligence boom spurs data center growth around the world.
- The deal, expected to close later this year, would be one of Samsung’s largest in recent years. It has agreed to buy FläktGroup from owner and European investment firm Triton.
Dive Insight:
Well known for its televisions, smart phones and appliances, Samsung is also looking to become a leader in the global HVAC market after struggling to sell micro chips.
Despite record sales in the first quarter of 2025, Samsung grappled with semiconductor headwinds, citing export controls on AI chips and deferred customer demand ahead of the release of its new high-bandwidth memory chips.
The company has been under heightened pressure from shareholders after failing to capitalize on the AI boom in the last year, Reuters reported. As a result, Samsung’s stock has been relatively weak and the company is pursuing growth efforts, stock repurchasing and other ways to increase its share price.
CFO and EVP Soon-Cheol Park said during Samsung’s Q1 earnings call on April 29 that the company is “continuously exploring strategies” to improve its cash holdings to enhance shareholder value and pursue mergers and acquisitions opportunities.
Samsung’s audio business, Harman, signed a deal to acquire Masimo’s Sound United portfolio earlier this month for $350 million. The FläktGroup acquisition would be Samsung’s largest in the past eight years.
FläktGroup, founded in 2016 as the result of a merger between DencoHappel and Fläkt Woods, generated revenues of 650 million euros in 2022, according to Triton. In 2023, it reported a 41% growth in earnings year over year with a positive outlook for 2024.
“Now, with Samsung Electronics’ global business foundation and investment, we expect to further accelerate our growth,” Trevor Young, CEO of FläktGroup, said in a statement.
FläktGroup is a supplier of heating and cooling systems used in data centers, museums and libraries, airports and hospitals for climate control, according to the company.
Through its latest agreement, Samsung has “laid the foundation” to become a global leader in heating and air, TM Roh, president and head of its mobile experience business, said in a statement.
The non-residential HVAC market is forecast to grow from $61 billion in 2024 to $99 billion in 2030, according to Samsung, citing market research data. That would be an annual growth rate of 8%. Meanwhile, the data center cooling market is expected to grow at a rate of 18%.
“Our commitment is to continue investing in and developing the high-growth HVAC business as a key future growth engine,” Roh said.
Last year, Samsung formed a joint venture with Lennox to sell ductless systems in the U.S. and Canada, strengthening its position in North American markets. It has also made investments in robotics, medical technology and consumer audio to advance its current offerings and stay abreast of emerging trends.
