Ruia Group acquires Germany-based Acument GmbH

KOLKATA: Extending its global footprint in the auto ancillary segment , the Rs.5,000-crore Ruia Group Monday announced the acquisition of Germany-based Acument GmbH & Co KG , one of the leading manufacturers of automotive fasteners .

This is the third acquisition for the Ruia Group, the owner of Dunlop India and Falcon Tyres , in Germany and fourth in Europe within a span of three years.

In October-November last year, four bidders tried to acquire Acument whose board of directors filed for insolvency in 2009 as the company incurred a loss of 40 million Euro in 2008 following global economic meltdown, an official said.

Acument produces a wide rage of high precision fasteners like long shafted bolts, hexagonal screws, nuts and forged parts.

The Ruia Group came out as the best bidder and signed the contract for the acquisition of Acument, which has 15 percent of market share in fastener segment in Europe and had posted a turnover of 800 million Euro before insolvency.

The group has acquired four plants of Acument in Neuss, Beckingen, Neuwied and Schorzberg as well as its logistic centre in Koln in Germany.

"Our investment will be 4 million Euro in the company and we expect that the company's turnover would be 200 million Euro this year," Pawan K. Ruia, chairman of the Group, told reporters.