McNally Bharat Engineering Co Ltd (MBECL) has acquired control of Hayward Tyler, a £32-million industrial pumps and motors making company based in UK, in a multi-pronged deal.
The Deepak Khaitan-controlled MBECL had picked up 25.27 per cent stake in the London-listed (AIM segment) Specialist Energy Group Plc (SEG) over the last two years till March 31 at Rs 46.06 crore. Last month, MBECL purchased another 16.42 per cent through placement of fresh shares worth £5 million (Rs 44 crore) in SEG – the holding company of Hayward Tyler. The final deal also saw MBCEL providing £4 million (Rs 35.2 crore) loan to financially-troubled SEG.
MBE Mineral Technologies Pte Ltd (MBE), a wholly-owned Singapore-domiciled investment arm of MBECL, now controls 41.69 per cent stake in SEG. The deal involved arrangement of borrowing facilities for SEG that included a £7 million (Rs 31.6 crore) revolving credit facility, bond and a guarantee facility of £3 million (Rs 26.4 crore) from Standard Chartered Bank. Three MBE directors have joined the SEG board.
Restructuring of operation
Prabir Ghosh, Wholetime Director and the Group CFO of MBCEL, told
“Much of the operations have been shifted to Cologne in Germany under MBE’s subsidiary MBE Cologne Engineering GmbH. Luton unit now will take care of R&D, assembly and testing operations. We have undertaken an exercise in redesigning the Hayward Tyler products,” he said.
MBCEL has downsized its employee strength to 89 from 129. The Hayward Tyler’s Glasgow and the Vermont (US) units, however, were not part of the restructuring exercise, Ghosh, who is on SEG board, said.
“With Hayward Tyler in our fold, we are planning to introduce their line of pumps in India”, Deepak Khaitan, Chairman of MBECL, said. Hayward Tyler has a marketing office at Faridabad and currently has eight orders.
New projects & Orders
During the first seven months this year Hayward Tyler’s new orders were £20.3 million against £18.8 million for the equivalent period last year.
Significant of them was oil and gas-related contract of £2.7 million for a range of sea-water lift and firewater pumps for the Hebron field off the coast of Newfoundland. Hayward Tyler has also won a further syngas project in South Korea valued at $1.9 million (£1.2 million). This project is only the second of its type worldwide, Hayward Tyler having already won and successfully delivered the first to GE.