News: Patel Engg buys 51 pct stake in Michigan Engineers

(RTR 12/09/2006) Mumbai - Patel Engineering Ltd. said on Tuesday it had bought a controlling stake in Mumbai-based civil engineering firm Michigan Engineers Pvt. Ltd for an undisclosed sum.

"Michigan is a very niche player in dredging and projects involving micro-tunneling. With this acquisition we will be able to provide end-to-end solutions to our customers," Managing Director Rupen Patel told Reuters.

"We can also bid for larger contracts," he said.

Patel said his company had acquired a 51 percent stake in Michigan. However, he declined to give the value of the deal.

Earlier in the day, Saurin Patel, managing director of Michigan Engineers, had said the acquisition would benefit them by providing scalability.

Saurin Patel would continue to head Michigan, though the board of the company would be reconstituted to have a larger representation from Patel Engineering, Rupen Patel said.

Michigan Engineers is a 28-year-old company with annual revenues of about 400 million rupees.