In a sweeping move to dominate the booming data center infrastructure market, Eaton Corp., the Irish-based power management giant with deep U.S. roots, announced Monday that it will acquire Boyd Thermal from Boyd Corp. for a staggering $9.5 billion. The blockbuster deal underscores Eaton’s ambition to solidify its hold on the power and cooling systems essential to the artificial intelligence revolution.
The transaction, advised by Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison LLP for Eaton and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP for Goldman Sachs Merchant Banking Division (Boyd’s parent company), signals one of the most aggressive bets yet on the rising global demand for efficient data center cooling and energy management.
Cooling the Heat of the AI Era
Boyd Thermal, headquartered in the United States, is a global leader in liquid cooling technologies that prevent overheating in data centers, aerospace systems, and industrial machinery. The company’s sophisticated systems are vital to managing the massive heat generated by today’s AI-driven processors and cloud infrastructure.
With over 5,000 employees and factories across North America, Asia, and Europe, Boyd Thermal projects $1.7 billion in revenue by 2026, with most of its growth fueled by its cutting-edge cooling solutions. The deal’s **valuation—22.5 times Boyd Thermal’s projected 2026 EBITDA—**is exceptionally high by industrial standards, reflecting investor enthusiasm for AI and data infrastructure.
