Scottish engineering group Clyde Blowers is to buy Finnish wind turbine parts manufacturer Moventas Group in a deal worth £85million, it was announced today.
The firm, based in East Kilbride, said it had a “definitive agreement” to buy Moventas which would save the Finnish company from bankruptcy.
Moventas, which makes gears for wind turbines, employs more than 1,000 people in 10 countries.
Clyde Blowers is owned by Scottish entrepreneur Jim McColl, who said the acquisition has been solely financed by equity investment and no third-party bank debt.
He said: “Moventas is a very high quality engineering business with a fantastic product range, a strong dedicated management team with deep engineering capability and excellent customer relationships.
“Following completion of the acquisition, the business will be freed from the shadow of the bankruptcy and restructuring process that has restrained development of the group over the last five months.
“With a debt-free balance sheet and clear strategy for growth in place, we look forward to developing Moventas into a global champion, supporting the needs of its customers in the renewable energy and industrial markets.”
In August Mr McColl sold Clyde Union Pumps, the company where he started his career as a teenage apprentice, for £750 million.