Mumbai, Aug. 27: Asian Paints (India) Ltd is acquiring a 60 per cent stake in SCIB Chemical S.A.E, Egypt, which is among the fifth largest paint companies in that country. The proposed investment in SCIB is put at Rs 24.5 crore.

According to the company, this investment will be made through its wholly-owned subsidiary based in Mauritius while the balance 40 per cent in SCIB will be held by the existing promoters.

Commenting on the acquisition, Ashwin Dani, vice-chairman & managing director, Asian Paints, said that the acquisition is in line with its vision to expand in emerging markets. He added that the Egyptian paint market was given high priority as it is a ‘stable’ economy. “SCIB Chemical is an excellent vehicle to enter the market, as the company compliments Asian Paints in its operations and offer numerous opportunities to provide value to the Egyptian consumer,” he pointed out.

SCIB Chemical president Ali Moussa said, “Asian Paints’ wide product range, formulations, know-how and purchasing power would contribute in increasing the overall profitability of the company.” The Egyptian paint market is estimated to be around $ 150 million, selling around 1.40 lakh tonnes and the other major paint companies in the country include Pachin, Sipes and Jotun.

SCIB Chemical was established in 1978 by the Moussa family. In 1997 it was turned into a joint stock company and became a subsidiary of United Paints & Chemicals (UPC) which is a joint venture between Egypt’s giant Orascom Construction Industries group and the Moussa family, the Hafez family and Badr Sednaour.

The Egyptian company has a paint plant with a capacity of 25,000 tonnes and it has a tax holiday till 2007. It has a network of 1500 paint traders and dealers.