American investment firm Blackstone Group is reportedly considering buying UK-based attractions operator Merlin Entertainments in a deal worth £100m (US$190.6m).
Poole-based Merlin, which operates the London Dungeon and Sea Life brands in the UK and Europe, could become a platform for Blackstone’s consolidation of the European attractions market.
According to The Times, the US group is also planning a back-to-back acquisition of the Legoland theme parks from its owner, Danish toy manufacturer Lego, which recently announced its intention to offload its parks business.
Merlin currently operates 26 attractions in eight countries and attracted a total of six million visitors to its sites last year. If the four Legoland sites – in Germany, England, Denmark and California – were added to this, the combined company could welcome around 12 million visitors a year, placing it second behind the Tussauds Group, which has around 15 million visitors annually.
It is also thought that if the deal goes through, Sea Life Centres could be added to each of the Legoland sites.
Merlin is currently owned by Hermes Private Equity, which bought the company 14 months ago from JP Morgan and Apax Partners for £72.5m (US$138m).
Blackstone Group has declined to comment on the deal, but a Merlin spokesperson said: “Merlin is committed to continuing to deliver ambitious growth.
“To this end, we are regularly in active talks with third parties to discuss growth opportunities.”
Last year, Merlin Entertainments unveiled its newest attraction, the £6m Earth Explorer in Belgium, which investigates the planet’s four key elements: earth, wind, fire and water.
