BATCO to complete
acquisition of Italian EMIT

Size of deal valued at $10 million

Local firm Badawi Azour for Trade and Contracting (BATCO), chaired by Antoine Azour, will acquire late this year the remaining 45 percent of Ercole Marelli Impianti Tecnologici (EMIT), an Italian firm specialized in engineering, procurement, and construction in the water and waste sectors and energy production from renewable sources. BATCO acquired last year 55 percent of the company for 10 million Euros.

The agreement will be signed with Euromec, an Italian manufacturing firm, which owns these shares. Italian authorities are expected to issue the final approval by the end of this year.

A source close to the deal said that the value of the transaction is estimated at around $10 million.

The source said that the water treatment sector is growing rapidly in the MENA region and the company has to strengthen its financial strategy to meet this demand. BATCO has several expansion plans and Euromec’s financial capabilities could not cope with the group’s ambitions, said the source.

There is a high demand for water treatment stations and industrial water treatment coming from Egypt, Turkey, Romania, United Arab Emirates, Croatia, and India, according to the source. EMIT has completed over 400 projects in Europe, Latin America, and the MENA, over 30 years.

BATCO’s turnover reached $400 million in 2014. It employs 5,000 people.