L&T buys British firm Thalest for Rs 24 crore

MUMBAI: Larsen & Toubro has acquired the UK-based provider of ship control and automation systems Thalest for 3 million ( Rs 24 crore) to use British firm's technology for commercial and naval ships.

The acquisition by L&T's electrical and automation business division is aimed at expanding the automation offerings for ships. Thalest is the UK-based holding company of Servowatch Systems, Bond Instrumentation & Process Control and Servowatch of US.

"We are increasing our automation services portfolio. This is a small acquisition for 3 million pounds, but with this acquisition we get technology for automation systems for marine space," SC Bhargava, senior vice-president and head of L&T Electrical & Automation, told ET.

Thalest offers integrated platform management ( IPMS) system and integrated bridge system (IBS) solutions for naval warships and mercantile marine ships, vessels and floating systems. Servowatch is a supplier of advanced integrated ship control systems, including alarm and monitoring, automation, platform management and bridge, navigation, communication and multimedia packages, for new build and retro-fit markets.

Prior to this, Larsen & Toubro's electrical and automation business division had bought the switchgear businesses of Malaysia's Tamco for about $110 million. As a part of its restructuring process, the $11.7 billion-engineering conglomerate L&T plans to hive off its electrical and automation business for potential value unlocking.