Insolvency specialists handling the administration of UK firm Reaction Engines appear to be slowly closing in on the sale of the collapsed hypersonic technology developer’s assets.
Detailing the sale process in their latest progress report, administrators from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) – appointed to the firm on 31 October 2024 – say they are continuing to work with a preferred bidder for Reaction Engines’ intellectual property (IP) and tangible assets.
“The sale process is ongoing and subject to confidentiality, however since our last update a number of matters have been progressed,” the report states.
“These include refining the assets to be included in the sale; reviewing, renewing and restoring various patents; servicing some of the plant and machinery to be included in any sale; and advancing a draft asset purchase agreement.”
PwC had flagged in June this year that it had selected a preferred bidder for the asset sale, but the identity of the potential buyer remains unknown.
Although Reaction Engines was best known for its hypersonic SABRE rocket engine, of greater immediate value to the aerospace industry are its capabilities around thermal management and heat-exchanger technology.
For example, it had been working as part of a consortium led by Honeywell – one possible buyer of the IP – on a fuel cell powertrain project to which it was supplying thermal management technology.
Should PwC fail to agree a sale of the assets, it will instead proceed to auction them off, it says.
PwC had previously indicated that Reaction Engines’ directors valued the company’s IP at £848,000.
In December, the administrators put the firm’s total deficiency at over £160 million, including now-worthless shareholdings of more than £150 million.
Since its founding in 1989, Reaction Engines had gained backing from aerospace primes including BAE Systems, Boeing and Rolls-Royce, alongside the United Arab Emirates’ Strategic Development Fund. However, it failed to secure critical funding in the latter half of 2024, leading to the administration.
