BAE Systems closes $5.6B acquisition of Ball Aerospace

Falls Church-based BAE Systems Inc., the U.S. arm of the British defense giant BAE Systems, has completed its $5.6 billion acquisition of Colorado-based Ball Aerospace from Ball Corp.

BAE Systems announced Feb. 14 it earned the necessary regulatory approvals and followed that with a Feb. 16 announcement of the deal’s completion. The company first announced the transaction, which it is funding through existing cash and new external debt, in August 2023.

BAE Systems will form a new business division, Space and Mission Systems, following the acquisition, and 5,200 U.S. employees from Ball Aerospace will join the company.

Ball Corp., the former owner of Ball Aerospace, supplies aluminum packaging for beverage and household product customers. Ball Aerospace supplies spacecraft, mission payloads and optical and antenna systems and works with the intelligence community, the Department of Defense, civilian space agencies and on aerospace and defense contracts.

“In recent years, we’ve said that we would seek out opportunities to grow our portfolio in advanced technology areas that meet our customers’ most urgent needs, and completing the acquisition of Ball Aerospace is an example of that strategy in action,” BAE Systems CEO Charles Woodburn said in a statement. “We look forward to welcoming the employees of Ball Aerospace to BAE Systems, bringing one of industry’s most respected and capable businesses into the group. The addition of this quality, fast-growing technology-focused business will significantly expand our presence in this increasingly critical space domain and further enhances our value compounding model of top-line growth, margin expansion and high cash generation.”

BAE Systems reported $12.6 billion in revenue in 2022 and has 31,300 employees in the U.S., including more than 5,100 in Virginia.