CorporateWABAG looking at global acquisitions worth Rs 2,000 cr
India"s first multinational in water treatment business VA Tech WABAG today said it will aggressively pursue global acquisitions to grow faster and has the capability to muster over Rs 2,000 crore for the purpose.
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"With this kind of resource base we can acquire a major firm in the business... Possibly the fourth or fifth largest player... We have asked our bankers to pursue such prospects," VA Tech WABAG Managing Director Rajiv Mittal told PTI.
"We are looking for buyout that will give us new technology, or it should open for us new geographies. These are the two criteria," Mittal added.
He said the company has hired Rothschild and Merrill Lynch as investment bankers for acquisitions.
VA Tech WABAG has German and Austrian roots, but its Indian operations were bought over by a set of professionals with the backing of ICICI Venture. Besides India, the company has presence in Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
"We are the fifth largest player in water business globally. By 2015, we will be number three company globally," Mittal said.
On the sources of funding for the acquisition, Mittal, who is the single largest equity holder in the Rs 1,100 crore revenue company, said, "We are a debt-free company and are now sitting on a cash pile of Rs 300-350 crore.... Add to this the profits during the current fiscal and other resources that we can leverage from..."