Dubai-based KBW Investments has completed a 50 per cent acquisition of Arcadia Engineering, a major company with operations in Romania and Brazil.

The company formalised the acquisition today (November 20) at a signing ceremony in Dubai, UAE, where Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed, the founder of KBW Investments, participated along with Florin Nistor Chinole, founder and partner of Arcadia Engineering.

Once the acquisition gets completed, Prince Khaled will take over as the new chairman of Arcadia Engineering.

“I envision the upsurge of a new powerhouse of engineering, architecture and project management services in the Middle East,” Prince Khaled said, referring to Arcadia’s upcoming expansion plans for Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE.  

With KBW’s investment, Arcadia is expected to witness substantial growth in the Middle East and South America in its core areas of engineering, architecture, design, consultancy and project management services for the construction and manufacturing industries, he stated.

Prince Khaled said Arcadia’s engineering standards have been recognised by the European market and by high-level legislative bodies.

The company was responsible for transferring construction know-how and expertise to the legislation development for the EU programme 'Europe 2050 - a strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth'.

The company’s current portfolio includes investments in the manufacturing, construction, engineering, energy and technology sectors.

“I have strong confidence in the management team’s ability to maximise the opportunity before us while maintaining the company’s unique culture - specially as it relates to investing in talent in specialised areas of engineering,” said Prince Khaled.

This acquisition marks KBW’s second European purchase in 2014, the first being Raimondi Cranes, a 150-year-old Italian tower crane manufacturer.-TradeArabia News Service