H&MV Engineering Lands $1.6B Valuation to Fuel US High-Voltage Buildout
Ireland-based high-voltage contractor H&MV Engineering announced Aug. 11 a private-equity transaction valuing the firm at roughly $1.6 billion, funding an accelerated push into US data center, battery storage and grid infrastructure markets, Engineering News-Record reports.
Market Impact
The roughly $855-million “continuation vehicle” is led by European private-equity firm Exponent, which has backed H&MV since 2022, and brings in US-based Apollo S3, Pantheon and SQ Capital as new investors. The deal is subject to regulatory approval and expected to close in September. H&MV reports a $2.3 billion order book and an $18.2 billion project pipeline, with more than 24 GW of projects in design and construction.
Founded in 1997 in Limerick, H&MV has grown revenue from about $70 million in 2020 to an expected $1.14 billion-plus in fiscal 2026, while its global workforce expanded from 300 to more than 1,900. The company entered the US market in late 2025 and now has multiple high-voltage projects underway ranging from 138 kV to 345 kV, with Texas and Louisiana as its most active markets. It employs more than 200 people in the US and expects to top 500 within five years, with a North American headquarters opening in Dallas this September. H&MV followed its US entry with the January acquisition of Amarillo-based Cooke Power Services, an electrical contractor serving utility and energy clients nationwide. H&MV chair John Moore said the Cooke purchase “reflects the continued customer pull into the U.S. market and the global opportunity ahead for H&MV.”
What It Means for Subcontractors
- Electrical and high-voltage contractors in Texas and Louisiana should expect increased subcontracting activity as H&MV builds out substation, switching station and underground collection system work from 15 kV to 345 kV.
- Firms with utility relationships or state-level licensing in the Midwest and Southwest are prime acquisition or partnership targets; H&MV has said it will keep pursuing deals that add local delivery capability or technical expertise.
- Cooke Power Services’ Amarillo operations retain existing leadership and workforce post-acquisition, signaling H&MV’s preference for absorbing established regional teams rather than replacing them, a pattern worth noting for competitors bidding against Cooke’s legacy contracts.
- Testing, commissioning and substation maintenance specialists should track H&MV’s Dallas headquarters opening in September 2026, as the office launch is likely to coincide with new RFPs tied to data center and battery-storage buildouts.
- Subcontractors serving data center and renewable energy clients should note H&MV’s stated strategy of expanding with existing multinational customers already served in Europe, meaning packages may arrive through direct client referrals rather than open bid solicitations.
