Health Transportation Group (HTGroup) has closed an agreement to acquire 75 percent of Irish healthcare transport company Lifeline Ambulance Service, with founder David Hall retaining the remaining 25 percent stake and continuing as chief executive. The deal marks HTGroup's entry into the Irish market and extends its existing operations in Spain and the UK.

HTGroup is the second-largest healthcare transportation provider in Europe, operating a fleet of approximately 2,800 vehicles and around 6,200 employees across Spain, Portugal and the UK, working under long-term concessions for regional governments and private clients. The group was acquired by Real Assets Investment Management from ProA Capital and Investindustrial in 2026, which said HTGroup had invested more than €100 million in systems and equipment over the prior six years to modernise the sector.

Irish firms Trasna Corporate Finance and Arthur Cox advised HTGroup as M&A and legal advisers on the transaction.

"The combination of Lifeline Ambulance Service's market position and HTGroup's scale creates a solid foundation for organic growth, service innovation, and selective expansion in Ireland," the group said, describing Ireland as a mature healthcare system with strong growth prospects and growing demand for outsourced transport services.

"Ireland is a very attractive market in which HTGroup can strengthen Lifeline's capabilities and support its continued development," said Guillermo Moya, chief executive of HTGroup, who described the deal as the beginning of a long-term alliance with all stakeholders.

"By combining Ireland's leading independent ambulance service with the experience and scale of one of the largest European healthcare transport groups, we will be able to invest even more in our staff, training, fleet, and technology," said David Hall, founder and chief executive of Lifeline Ambulance Service. He added that the deal allows the company to reach a different level without altering its basic principles, and that it will continue to be led and managed from Ireland.

The structural driver behind the deal is continued pan-European consolidation of healthcare transport operators, with larger groups acquiring majority stakes in established national providers while retaining founder leadership to preserve existing client relationships.

For the sector, the acquisition confirms that international healthcare transport platforms are treating Ireland as their next target market for buy-and-build expansion.

Source: investindustrial.com / democrata.es