Bahrain-based Venture Capital Bank (VCBank), and Hanco, a Susi Arabian fleet management company, and Hanco have acquired Byrne Investment Limited (BIL) and its subsidiary companies Byrne Equipment Rental and Spacemaker, a report said.

Byrne is one of the largest and most diversified equipment rental and modular space providers in the GCC, reported the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication. It operates in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Qatar.

Spacemaker is the leading manufacturer of modular structure in the GCC.

The total transaction amounted to approximately Dh600 million ($163.4 million).

Established in 1992, Byrne has 450 employees and 13 offices and rental depots all over the GCC.

With more than 20 years of experience, Byrne is the provider of temporary power and tailor-made engineering solutions for complex purpose-built structures that require fast track turnaround and innovative transport solutions.

It suits a wide spectrum of sectors including oil and gas, infrastructure, construction, project and events, amongst other sectors.

"This acquisition will surely add value to VCBank's investment portfolio which it seeks to diversify industrially and geographically," VCBank chief executive Abdullatif Mohamed Janahi said.

"It adheres to VCBank's strategy which is designed to generate consistent superior returns with reasonable risk from high-quality, rigorously-investigated, efficiently-structured and well-managed investment opportunities," he added.

"Demand for rental in the GCC is set to increase as companies focus on outsourcing services previously managed in-house, driven by capital allocation and funding restraints.

"At the same time, demand for power significantly outstrips supply, and this shortfall is expected to increase over the medium-to long-term, on the back of a booming regional population and the increasing number of projects in the GCC," he said.

"In addition, the GCC is emerging as a major hub for tourism, sports and international affairs, with a growing calendar of events demanding temporary power equipment and modular structure solutions," he added.

Hanco is a Saudi Arabian leasing, car rental, and fleet management company established in 1976 and is now among the top three leasing companies in the kingdom. – TradeArabia News Service