NEWS: UPDATE


LUNA INNOVATIONS ACQUISITION MAKES ‘SENSE’ OptaSense will become a


Optical technology vendor Luna Innovations has acquired OptaSense from parent company, QinetiQ for £29m. OptaSense delivers fibre optic


distributed monitoring solutions for pipelines, oilfield services, security, highways and railways, plus power and utilities monitoring systems. Te acquisition aims to create a significantly larger combined optic sensing company, providing


INFRASTRUCTURE AGREEMENT BRINGS FTTH TO 1.5M BELGIAN HOMES


Belgian operator Proximus has signed a partnership agreement with the EQT Infrastructure V fund. It will form a new joint venture to design, build and maintain an FTTH network in Flanders, Belgium. Te two companies


identified opportunities in accelerating the build- out pace of the network in Belgium’s Flemish Region, bringing the required connectivity to Flanders so that its residents and businesses can actively participate in the Gigabit Society. Te joint venture will


benefit from the combination of EQT Infrastructure’s experience of developing fibre companies in Europe and North America, and Proximus’ expertise in the Belgian telecom market. Te parties aim to efficiently build a fibre network, which will be open and accessible to all operators. Te first customers will be connected this year, while the overall goal is to bring connectivity to at least 1.5 million households and businesses over the coming years.


Te closing of the


transaction is expected in the first quarter of this year. EQT Infrastructure will initially own 50.1 per cent of the venture and Proximus will hold 49.9 per cent.


www.fibre-systems.com


Luna with distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) intellectual property, products and expertise. It will also provide algorithm-


development expertise, critical for AI and machine learning. OptaSense’s research and development talent and salesforce, combined with more than 150 active and pending patents, will enhance Luna’s existing team and broaden its IP portolio.


subsidiary of Luna, while continuing to operate under its existing brand for the foreseeable future. OptaSense employees remain in the company, with offices in the UK, Dubai, the US and Canada. Luna CEO Scot Graeff said: ‘Te


acquisition marks an incredibly important milestone in Luna’s history and will further support our growth trajectory. Tis allows Luna


to acquire a leader in fibre optic sensing solutions and distributed acoustic sensing systems of a global size and scale that will truly be transformative to our company.’ Steve Wadey, QinetiQ CEO,


added: ‘We are delighted to announce the sale of OptaSense to Luna, who will provide greater synergies and relevant market access to enable and accelerate their future growth.’


LUMENTUM TO ACQUIRE COHERENT FOR $5.7BN


confident in our combined ability to pursue exciting new growth opportunities.’ He continued: ‘Together, we


expect to increase the pace of innovation, and to be at the forefront of the long-term market trends that are dependent on the capabilities of photonics. Te combined company will also have a strong financial profile with a diversified revenue mix and significant synergy opportunities that will deliver enhanced value to our stockholders. Te future is truly bright at Lumentum – and with the addition of Coherent, it is even brighter.’ Andy Mates, Coherent


Lumentum is to acquire Coherent for $5.7bn, bringing the later’s photonics and lasers businesses into the former’s telecom, datacom, and 3D sensing photonics businesses. Te combined company will


be beter positioned to serve the needs of a global customer- base increasingly dependent on photonics to enable important end-market transitions. Tis includes the shiſt to digital and virtual approaches to work and life, the transition to 5G in wireless networking, advanced bioinstrumentation, advanced microelectronics, and new materials for next generation consumer electronic devices, flat panel and OLED displays, communications equipment, electric and autonomous vehicles, and energy storage. ‘Te combination accelerates


Lumentum’s penetration of the more than $10bn market for lasers


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and photonics outside of the communications and 3D sensing applications,’ Lumentum said in a statement. ‘Te powerful R&D engine of the combined company will be primed to accelerate innovation in existing and future markets that need the unique capabilities that photonics bring.’ Alan Lowe, Lumentum president


and CEO, said: ‘We are thrilled to join forces with Coherent to create one of the world’s largest and most diverse photonics technology companies with leading positions in the growing market for photonics. ‘Coherent brings one of the


most recognisable and respected brands in the photonics industry and a very talented and innovative team. By increasing our scale, expanding our portolio, and bolstering our R&D capabilities at a time when global markets are increasingly relying on photonics products and technologies, we are


president and CEO, added: ‘We are excited to bring Coherent’s strength in OLED display manufacturing, semiconductor wafer inspection and life science instrumentation to Lumentum’s portolio, to name but a few of the key applications we serve, and believe Lumentum’s expertise and scale in world-class photonics components and systems will accelerate Coherent’s vertical integration and addressable market expansion in several high growth areas. We anticipate the combined complementary product portolio, breadth of customer application knowledge, and R&D capabilities, all based on photonics, will accelerate innovation and adoption of photonics across the many markets that we serve.’ Two members of the Coherent


board will be appointed to the Lumentum board, which will be expanded to nine directors, at the closing of the transaction in the second half of the year.


Issue 30 n Winter 2021 n FiBRE SYSTEMS 5


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