Stockholders OK sale of L-1 units to French group

Stockholders of L-1 Identity Solutions Inc. have approved the previously announced merger with Safran SA, an international technology group whose core businesses are aerospace, defense and security, according to an L-1 announcement dated Feb. 3.

The Paris-based firm is buying a scaled-down L-1 Identity Solutions, following the pending sale of L-1’s Solutions’ Intelligence Services Group to BAE Systems Inc., which was announced in September 2010.

BAE Systems is paying $295.8 million to acquire the L-1 group, which is composed of SpecTal LLC, Advanced Concepts Inc., and McClendon LLC.

Following approval by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, completion of the BAE sale and other customary conditions, Safran will purchase L-1’s Secure Credentialing Solutions, Biometric, and Enterprise Access Solutions and Enrollment Services units.

Under the terms of the merger agreement, L-1 stockholders will be entitled to receive $12 per share in cash upon closing of the Safran merger, for an aggregate enterprise value of approximately $1.6 billion, inclusive of outstanding debt, the announcement states.

Safran said it plans to integrate the L-1 units into its Morpho subsidiary.

With more than 4,000 employees at 40 locations across 18 states, Safran sales to U.S. customers represented approximately $2.5 billion in 2009 revenue.

The Safran merger is expected to close during the first quarter of 2011, according to the L-1 statement.

BAE Systems, of Rockville, Md., ranks No. 15 on Washington Technology’s 2010 Top 100 list of the largest federal government contractors.