• Investment World
• eWorld
• Brand Line
• Mentor
• Life
• Brand Quest
• The New Manager

Stocks

• Quotes
• SE Diary
• Scoreboard
• Open-End Mutual Fund

Cross Currency

• Rates
  
  

Shipping

• Ports
  
  

Archives

• Yesterday
• Datewise
• Resources
• In Focus
• In Depth

Group Sites

• The Hindu
• The Hindu ePaper
• Business Line
• Business Line ePaper
• Sportstar
• Frontline
• The Hindu eBooks
• The Hindu Images

Jayanta Mallick

Kolkata, Jan. 6

The Rs 1,000-crore unlisted Tata Projects Ltd (TPL) formally took an over 75 per cent stake in Artson Engineering Ltd for around Rs 33 crore on Friday.

The board of Artson was reconstituted and Mr K.P. Singh, former Managing Director of TPL, has become the Chairman of the new five-member board of Artson, a listed engineering firm specialising in piping and large diameter tankage.

Sources in Bombay House said the acquisition was crucial ahead of the proposed 50:50 joint venture with public sector engineering major EIL, expected to be formally floated in March with an authorised capital less than Rs 15 crore.

The joint venture, to focus on the oil and gas sector, would leverage EIL’s strength in engineering, and TPL’s procurement and construction expertise. “Artson’s capabilities and its status as one of the qualified vendors of EIL makes the acquisition a strategic fit,” said a senior Tata Group source.

Mr Singh, who retired as Managing Director of TPL on the last day of 2007, is also slated to represent Tatas on the joint venture’s proposed four-member board.

It is learnt that the non-executive Chairman would be EIL nominee and the operational head with a board berth would be from the TPL. The operational headquarters of the joint venture is being located at the National Capital Region.

According to the source, TPL’s strategic business unit for the petroleum sector will continue to co-exist with the joint venture. Artson will also continue to remain listed. But it will reduce the face value of its shares from Rs 10 to Re 1 each.

Artson board has allotted 2,76,90,000 equity shares of Re 1 each to TPL on Friday. The five-member new board of Artson would include two existing board members and one independent. The formalisation of the takeover makes Artson a subsidiary of TPL, and a Tata outfit.

More Stories on : Mergers & Acquisitions | Engineering | Stocks

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
Tata Projects buys Artson Engg

Copyright © 2008, The Hindu Business Line. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu Business Line