 announced a long-awaited deal with a European partner on Monday, sending shares up over 5 percent.){kind=link}
Online grocery service Ocado (LON:OCDO) announced a long-awaited deal with a European partner on Monday, sending shares up over 5 percent.
The company announced the deal with a “regional European retailer” to use Ocado’s Smart Platform. The details are sparse however, with Ocado saying in a statement that “the retailer wishes to remain anonymous until it launches its online business in order to retain competitive advantage”.
The grocery service, who failed to turn a profit before announcing a deal to work with Morrisons supermarkets as its online platform, have been planning to expand overseas for some time but had failed to secure a deal. The company previously given itself a deadline of end of 2015 to agree such a deal, but failed to secure one.
In a statement, Tim Steiner, CEO of Ocado, said:
“We are delighted that our partner has decided to adopt OSP for its online operations. This is an exciting step in the evolution of our business and in the delivery of our strategy.
“The benefits of our integrated solution are clear. As this particular retailer looks to develop its online offering the agreement we have signed provides the flexibility to expand its capacity efficiently in the future. We look forward to working closely with our new partner in the months and years ahead.
“Our discussions with other retailers across the globe are ongoing and we continue to expect to sign multiple deals in the medium term.”
Ocado shares are currently up 4.99 percent at 331.78 (0938GMT).