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Keller’s footprint now in South African, sub-Saharan construction markets
The U.K.-based Keller Group is purchasing Esorfranki Geotechnical, the largest ground engineering business in South Africa, according to a Nov. 5 press release from Keller. The acquisition is expected to be completed by the end of November 2013.
The release said that Esorfranki Geotechnical will revert to its original name, Franki, but the business will continue to be run by its current management team. It will become part of Keller’s Europe, Middle East, Africa (EMEA) division.
The release said: “This acquisition will accelerate Keller’s entry into select sub-Saharan construction markets, where significant growth fueled by major infrastructure and resource-related projects is expected over the medium to long term.”
Esorfranki Geotechnical currently provides design-build services to the mining, civil engineering, and construction industries. It is engaged in the construction of piling, pipejacking, lateral support, and ground improvement. The press release noted that although its principal market is South Africa, the business also has operations in Angola, Botswana, Ghana, Tanzania, Swaziland, Lesotho, Nigeria, Namibia, Mozambique, and the Indian Ocean islands.
Justin Atkinson, Keller chief executive, said: “The combination of Esorfranki Geotechnical’s local knowledge and resources with Keller’s scale, experience, and broad range of techniques will make us ideally placed to undertake complex major projects requiring design expertise and multi-product solutions in a region where we expect the longer-term opportunities to be significant.”
The Keller Group of companies is a multinational organization providing ground engineering services throughout the world. According to the company’s website, Keller “is the world’s largest independent ground engineering contractor,” with global annual revenues of around ₤1.5 billion ($2.4 billion USD) and approximately 8,000 staff worldwide.
For more information: Keller Group PLC