Firefly strengthens portfolio with $855 million deal for national security tech firm SciTec

(Reuters) -Space tech firm Firefly Aerospace will acquire national security technology company SciTec for about $855 million, the company said on Sunday, just months after its Nasdaq listing, honing its portfolio at a time when U.S. military and civil programs are receiving increased investor interest. The deal, which will be funded through a combination of $300 million in cash and $555 million in Firefly shares, is set to close by the end of the year, Firefly said. In August, Texas-based firm Firefly secured a valuation of $9.84 billion after its shares surged 55.6% in their Nasdaq debut, marking the largest U.S. listing this year by a space tech firm. Firefly's acquisition of Princeton, New Jersey-headquartered SciTec will enhance its space services by integrating SciTec's defense software analytics into its systems, the company said. SciTec's core capabilities, which encompass missile warning, tracking and defense, intelligence, surveillance, among other elements, will bolster Firefly's existing launch, lunar, and in-space services. Once the deal closes, SciTec will be operated as a Firefly unit under Jim Lisowski, its current CEO, Firefly said. Rising geopolitical tensions and deteriorating international relations have put a spotlight on space and defense contractors. The deal would help Firefly strengthen its position as a space tech firm boosting its lucrative military-space prospects. Firefly has come a long way from a tumultuous past, including a bankruptcy in 2017 and the ouster of its CEO last year. In September, Firefly said its Alpha rocket booster was destroyed in a testing mishap. The incident was another interruption to Firefly's business just weeks after it closed an investigation into the failure of its Alpha rocket, which put a satellite owned by Lockheed Martin in a shallow orbit in late April, implying a mission failure. (Reporting by Gursimran Kaur in Bengaluru; editing by Diane Craft and Chizu Nomiyama)

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