EnerMech goes shopping in USA and South Africa

Oil and gas engineering specialist, EnerMech, has extended its international presence in the cranes and lifting and valves sectors with two acquisitions in the USA and Africa.

The combined value of the deals is said to be approximately £4 million and are forecast to add an extra £25 million to group revenues over the next three years.

Aberdeen-headquartered EnerMech provides a range of mechanical engineering services to the international energy industry, employs more than 2000 staff across 30 locations and the company expects 2014 revenues to exceed £280 million.

In the US, EnerMech has bought Louisiana-based Diversified Oil Field Service Inc (Diversified), while in South Africa valves specialist Control Valve Technology (CVT) has joined the EnerMech stable.

Diversified has a 20 year pedigree of providing crane inspections, repairs and maintenance services to the offshore industry throughout the Gulf of Mexico, in addition to hydraulic repair, testing and design, equipment rental and cranes sales.

The acquisition is a strategic move to develop EnerMech’s crane offering in the USA, Mexico and other Latin American countries including Trinidad, Venezuela and Brazil, but it will also create additional opportunities for EnerMech’s other six business lines including hydraulics, hose integrity management and equipment rental.

Diversified president Stan Elmore, co-owners Nathan Charrier and Ernie Guth and their 20-plus staff have transferred to EnerMech. The cranes business line will continue to operate from Diversified’s 17,000 sq ft facility at Slidell and there are plans to open a second Louisiana base at Lafayette to service central Gulf of Mexico operations.

The acquisition of Cape Town-based CVT is part of a three year £20 million investment programme to build a strong infrastructure across Africa, which has to date included the acquisition of cranes and load testing business Water Weights International SA, establishing a presence in Nigeria, Ghana and Angola, a trading entity in Mozambique, and the opening of new regional headquarters and workshop facilities in Cape Town, South Africa.

CVT provides servicing, refurbishment and sales of control and safety valves used in the energy, mining and petrochemical industries. The company has a number of long-term customer relationships and has successfully executed projects in South Africa, Angola, Nigeria, Ghana and the Middle East.

CVT’s 19 staff and owner Stephen David will transfer to EnerMech and Stephen David will lead EnerMech’s valves operations in Africa, alongside newly appointed Regional Director Jean François Roche, who joined EnerMech in February and is a former managing director of Société Générale de Surveillance in Algeria.

The deal gives EnerMech access to a facility to support offshore rig repair work at Saldanha Bay in the Western Cape and the company said the new partnership will allow the introduction of other service lines to CVT’s existing client base.

EnerMech Chief Executive Officer, Doug Duguid, said: “Both acquisitions will extend our service provision in the US and Africa which are both extremely important regions for our future growth. At the same time, adding Diversified and CVT to our portfolio gives us an excellent platform to introduce our other services to their respective client bases.

“Both businesses are profitable and highly respected in their sectors and combined with EnerMech’s more developed infrastructure and fiscal strength, they will be key building blocks as we expand our cranes and lifting services in the Americas and our valves operations and across sub-Saharan Africa.

“Our philosophy of establishing a strong local presence and infrastructure, using wherever possible the skills of a local workforce, and investing in training and the latest equipment, will bring long-term dividends both for us and our clients.”