Pencarrow invests in ARANZ Geo

Wellington-based Pencarrow Private Equity has taken an equity stake in ARANZ Geo, developers of 3D geographical modelling software Leapfrog.

According to the firms, Pencarrow has secured a mix of existing shares and new shares through the investment, the terms of which were not disclosed. The new funds are intended to help ARANZ Geo accelerate its global expansion and product plans and also support strategic acquisition opportunities.

This follows on ARANZ Geo's recent acquisition of Australia-based consultancy QG, an integrated geological, geometallurgical and mine planning consultancy.

“2014 is going to be a big year for us,” said Shaun Maloney, CEO of ARANZ. “We’re very pleased to have Pencarrow as a cornerstone investor as we go after growth opportunities and cement our market leader position.

"We’re well placed to leverage international markets and we’ll also consider further acquisitions to broaden our geosciences offering. The new funds will also allow us to build our team more rapidly to support this vision, particularly at an executive level.”

Nigel Bingham, executive director of Pencarrow Private Equity said, “ARANZ Geo has achieved great success to date, with a proven business model and profitable track record, by offering its customers products and solutions that give them a clear and sustainable competitive advantage. We’re excited to back their global expansion plans.”

ARANZ Geo’s R&D and head office is based in Christchurch and sales and support offices are located in Australia, Chile, Brazil, Denmark and Canada, with distributors in South Africa, Colombia and Mexico.