Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer advises Neara on acquisition of Zepben

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer’s (HSF Kramer) venture and growth capital team has advised Neara on its acquisition of Zepben.

Based in Australia, Neara builds physics-enabled digital models of critical infrastructure to help networks understand how their assets will behave and react in the real world. Also based in Australia, Zepben is a software company specialising in electrical network modelling for utilities.

The acquisition will support growing demand for combined physical and electrical capabilities as utilities face rising connection requests and the new demands of the AI economy. 

Zepben’s electrical modelling capabilities will be integrated into Neara’s existing platform capabilities, delivering a more accurate understanding of utility networks and establishes the foundation for informed, evidence-based investments across reliability, resiliency, affordability and risk mitigation.

The HSF Kramer team was led by partner and co-head of venture and growth capital, Australia, Claire Thompson, with partner Kwok Tang, senior associates George Psaltis, Adam Ong, and Eric Kong, executive counsel Amalia Stone, and solicitor Angela Liu.

Claire said, “We’re proud to have worked with the team at Neara on this acquisition. Neara has established itself as one of Australia’s most innovative technology companies, helping utilities around the world modernise critical infrastructure and unlock greater grid capacity. This transaction is a significant milestone in Neara’s growth journey and an important development for both the global infrastructure sector and Australia’s technology ecosystem.”

Tom Gooch, VP Commercial at Neara, said, “It was a pleasure working with Claire, George, Adam, and the HSFK team. They were highly responsive, collaborative, and commercial. We’re thrilled to have the Zepben team join Neara and together provide a unique solution for the capacity constraints that are stalling the energy transition and the construction of sovereign AI capability.”

This deal is another example of HSF Kramer’s market-leading work in Australian tech M&A. Other recent examples include advising:

• SafetyCulture on its acquisition of Twine
• Innovation Victoria on its investment in Worldview and exit to Ondas
• Culture Amp on its acquisition of Orgnostics
• Mr Yum on its merger with me&u
• Xero on the sale of Waddle to Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
• Deputy on its strategic investments from Express Employment Professionals and Xero