June 03, 2019

Accenture Acquires BRIDGE Energy Group to Advance Utilities’ Agenda for the Grid of the Future

Acquisition enhances Accenture’s capabilities in grid modernization, analytics and security services for utilities in North America

NEW YORK; June 3, 2019 – Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has acquired BRIDGE Energy Group (BRIDGE), a Boston-based consulting and systems integration firm that provides grid modernization, analytics and security services to utilities in North America. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

BRIDGE serves North American electric utilities, and its experience and strong relationships with transmission and distribution leaders, managers and subject matter experts bolsters Accenture’s portfolio of end-to-end services for electric transmission and distribution service providers.

“We are excited to welcome BRIDGE to Accenture to better help utilities drive transformation by creating new efficiencies for assets and operations while uncovering new revenue streams,” said Stephanie Jamison, a managing director at Accenture who leads its Transmission and Distribution business. “Similar to our 2015 acquisition of the Structure Group, BRIDGE will help us meet growing demand from our utilities clients for evaluating and applying new and emerging technologies, including advanced analytics, artificial intelligence, the cloud and blockchain, to develop the grid of the future.”

Utilities require new services and innovative thinking to better manage industry pressures, including new regulations, an aging workforce, extreme weather events and the proliferation of distributed energy resources (DER) such as solar, wind power, storage and electric vehicles. BRIDGE excels in helping clients develop, deploy and operate solutions for these challenges, including real-time operations, DER management, transmission renewables integration, grid analytics, and grid security compliance.

“Joining forces with Accenture will provide the scale, career training, ecosystem and other strengths that will further enable our employees to leverage their strong industry skills to achieve even greater success in serving clients and advancing their careers,” said Hugo van Nispen, BRIDGE’s CEO. “It’s very exciting to jointly tackle our clients’ most complex challenges through innovation, especially for grid modernization, reliability and resiliency. I look forward to our clients and our team benefiting from Accenture’s deep industry and technology expertise and its end-to-end innovation capabilities.”

BRIDGE’s employees have joined the utilities practice of Accenture’s Resources operating group.

Founded in 2004, BRIDGE has received multiple notable awards and recognition for its accomplishments in the industry, including six-times on Inc. magazine’s “Inc. 5000” list of the fastest-growing American companies in 2010-2014 and 2016, Smart Grid Product of the Year Award from SmartGrid,in 2015 and 2017 and Gold winner of the Global Excellence Awards® in the New Products and Services category in 2018 by Info Security Products Guide.

About Accenture
Accenture is a leading global professional services company, providing a broad range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries and all business functions — underpinned by the world’s largest delivery network — Accenture works at the intersection of business and technology to help clients improve their performance and create sustainable value for their stakeholders. With 477,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries, Accenture drives innovation to improve the way the world works and lives. Visit us at www.accenture.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
Except for the historical information and discussions contained herein, statements in this news release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “likely,” “anticipates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “projects,” “believes,” “estimates,” “positioned,” “outlook” and similar expressions are used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. These include, without limitation, risks that: the transaction might not achieve the anticipated benefits for Accenture; Accenture’s results of operations could be adversely affected by volatile, negative or uncertain economic and political conditions and the effects of these conditions on the company’s clients’ businesses and levels of business activity; Accenture’s business depends on generating and maintaining ongoing, profitable client demand for the company’s services and solutions including through the adaptation and expansion of its services and solutions in response to ongoing changes in technology and offerings, and a significant reduction in such demand or an inability to respond to the changing technological environment could materially affect the company’s results of operations; if Accenture is unable to keep its supply of skills and resources in balance with client demand around the world and attract and retain professionals with strong leadership skills, the company’s business, the utilization rate of the company’s professionals and the company’s results of operations may be materially adversely affected; Accenture could face legal, reputational and financial risks if the company fails to protect client and/or company data from security breaches or cyberattacks; the markets in which Accenture operates are highly competitive, and Accenture might not be able to compete effectively; changes in Accenture’s level of taxes, as well as audits, investigations and tax proceedings, or changes in tax laws or in their interpretation or enforcement, could have a material adverse effect on the company’s effective tax rate, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition; Accenture’s profitability could materially suffer if the company is unable to obtain favorable pricing for its services and solutions, if the company is unable to remain competitive, if its cost-management strategies are unsuccessful or if it experiences delivery inefficiencies; Accenture’s results of operations could be materially adversely affected by fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; as a result of Accenture’s geographically diverse operations and its growth strategy to continue geographic expansion, the company is more susceptible to certain risks; Accenture’s business could be materially adversely affected if the company incurs legal liability; Accenture’s work with government clients exposes the company to additional risks inherent in the government contracting environment; if Accenture is unable to manage the organizational challenges associated with its size, the company might be unable to achieve its business objectives; if Accenture does not successfully manage and develop its relationships with key alliance partners or fails to anticipate and establish new alliances in new technologies, the company’s results of operations could be adversely affected; Accenture’s ability to attract and retain business and employees may depend on its reputation in the marketplace; Accenture might not be successful at acquiring, investing in or integrating businesses, entering into joint ventures or divesting businesses; if Accenture is unable to protect its intellectual property rights or if Accenture’s services or solutions infringe upon the intellectual property rights of others or the company loses its ability to utilize the intellectual property of others, its business could be adversely affected; changes to accounting standards or in the estimates and assumptions Accenture makes in connection with the preparation of its consolidated financial statements could adversely affect its financial results; many of Accenture’s contracts include payments that link some of its fees to the attainment of performance or business targets and/or require the company to meet specific service levels, which could increase the variability of the company’s revenues and impact its margins; Accenture’s results of operations and share price could be adversely affected if it is unable to maintain effective internal controls; Accenture might be unable to access additional capital on favorable terms or at all and if the company raises equity capital, it may dilute its shareholders’ ownership interest in the company; Accenture may be subject to criticism and negative publicity related to its incorporation in Ireland; as well as the risks, uncertainties and other factors discussed under the “Risk Factors” heading in Accenture plc’s most recent annual report on Form 10-K and other documents filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Statements in this news release speak only as of the date they were made, and Accenture undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statements made in this news release or to conform such statements to actual results or changes in Accenture’s expectations.

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Contacts:


Guy Cantwell
Accenture
+1 281 900 9089
guy.cantwell@accenture.com

Matt Corser
Accenture
+44 755 784 9009
matthew.corser@accenture.com