IMI to buy German valve maker for 121 million pounds

By Aashika Jain (Reuters) - British engineer IMI Plc said it would buy German valve maker Bopp & Reuther Holding GmbH for an enterprise value of 152.6 million euros (121 million pounds) to expand in emerging markets, particularly China and India. Privately owned Bopp & Reuther, which has a large customer base in China, India and South Korea, makes control and safety valves for the power generation industry. Power markets in China and India are forecast to grow 5 percent to 7 percent every year over the next five years, IMI said in a statement. The company, which also reported a 6 percent decline in revenue for the four months to October-end, said it expects savings of about 9 million euros from the deal by 2017-end. IMI, which supplies flow-control systems such as valves for power, nuclear, oil and gas and petrochemical plants, has been growing through acquisitions. Chief Executive Mark Selway told Reuters in August that deals were on IMI's radar as the company set a target of doubling operating profit by 2019. The German company will become part of IMI's Critical Engineering division, which makes valves and actuators that can withstand extreme temperature and pressure. The business accounted for nearly 40 percent of the company's total revenue in the first half of 2014. The Bopp & Rather deal will give IMI access to a new high-margin opportunity in the aftermarket business, Selway said on a conference call on Friday. "We are expecting that they'll (Bopp & Reuther) see improving margins in 2014 versus 2013," Selway said. Bopp & Reuther reported revenue of 90 million euros and EBITDA of 11.2 million euros in 2013. IMI said the acquisition, which will add to earnings in 2015, is expected to be completed around the end of the year. Shares in the FTSE-100 company were marginally down at 1128 GMT on the London Stock Exchange. (Reporting by Aashika Jain in Bangalore; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier and Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)