Jacobs expands in India

Jacobs has expanded its presence in the Indian construction market with the acquisition of a minority stake in Consulting Engineering Services (CES). Headquartered in Delhi, CES has 2000 employees and is active in the surface transportation, ports, airports, water infrastructure, power, environmental and buildings & facilities sectors as an engineer, consultant and construction manager. Terms of the deal were not disclosed

Commenting on the company's investment, Jacobs president & CEO Craig Martin said, "Our investment in CES adds to our 2000-person-strong existing presence in India, complements our process industry strength there, and gives us access to resources to address the strong, emerging infrastructure market in India and in other regions in Asia and the Middle East. CES has an impressive track record of large-scale civil and infrastructure projects such as highways, bridges, ports, airports, railroads, power plants, architectural services, environmental clean-up, and water supply and sanitation facilities. CES is able to benefit from our complementary skills and global markets, and working with Jacobs creates the largest consulting engineering and construction force in India."

His sentiments were echoed by CES chairman and managing director, Professor S.S. Chakraborty, who said, "CES sees strong synergies with Jacobs in providing planning, engineering, and project management services for the rapidly growing infrastructure and related sectors in India and abroad. We are proud to have this strategic alliance, and look forward to rapid growth and enhanced impact for both companies. The combined operations of CES and Jacobs make for a formidable force in India and the surrounding region."

Jacobs is one of the largest construction companies in the US, with revenues last year of US$ 8.47 billion. It was ranked 38^th in the 2008 edition of International Construction's league table of the world's 200 largest construction companies.