Hyder spreads wings in Middle East

Mar 12 2008 by Sion Barry, Western Mail

HYDER Consulting, the international advisory and design consultancy, has acquired an architectural and interior design consultancy in the United Arab Emirates.

The group’s Middle East business has acquired the business and assets of Holford & Associates.

Based in Dubai, Holfords is an architectural and interior design consultancy, which has been operating primarily in Dubai for more than 20 years, with an order book encompassing projects across the United Arab Emirates and Oman.

London Stock Exchange listed Hyder was created as a management buy-out from former Welsh utilities group Hyder. The company, which is now headquartered in London, employs 300 in Cardiff.

The initial consideration for the acquisition amounts to £9.2m, of which £7.1m is payable in cash, and £2m will be satisfied by the issue of 471,974 fully-paid Hyder Consulting ordinary shares. A further payment of up to £6.1m is payable in cash over three years dependent on future performance.

Three of the five vendor partners, David James Tripney, Saeed Al Jabri and Colin Thomas Wood, will remain employed in the business, whilst the other two, Ed Bain and Robert Fernandez, will retire on completion. A team of around 220 staff will transfer. Turnover, as stated in the audited accounts for Holfords for the year to September 30 2007, amounted to approximately £8.2m, with profits before tax of £2.5m. The gross assets acquired are approximately £4.9m, with net assets of approximately £2.2m.

In line with Hyder’s strategy of building critical mass and improving margins, the acquisition significantly strengthens the group’s Middle East business and brings the number of people employed in the region to approximately 1,500.

The integration of Holfords will allow Hyder Consulting to offer a full range of property services in this growing market, and provides it with the ability to grow the Holfords architectural and interior design business throughout the group’s Middle East network.

Tim Wade, chief executive of Hyder Consulting, said, “The acquisition reinforces our position in the region as a leading provider of advisory and design services to both property developers and world-renowned concept architects.”