Infosys to acquire US-based Noah Consulting for $70 mn

This is the company's third acquisition in CY2015

Infosys, India’s second largest information technology (IT) services company, said on Monday it would acquire US-based Noah Consulting for a consideration of $70 million (Rs 454 crore), in an all cash deal. Founded in 2008, Noah Consulting provides advanced information management consulting services for the oil & gas industry and employs 122 consultants.

This would be Infosys’ third acquisition in the ongoing calendar year under the leadership of chief executive and managing director Vishal Sikka. The transaction is expected to close before the end of the third quarter of FY16, subject to customary closing conditions, the company said.

As on September 30, Infosys had cash and cash equivalent reserves of Rs 32,099 crore ($4.9 billion) in its balance-sheet. Noah Consulting helps upstream oil & gas companies plan, architect and deploy information solutions to unlock the value of their oil & gas assets. This acquisition combines Noah’s deep industry knowledge, information strategy planning, data governance and architecture capabilities with Infosys’ ability to provide technology and outsourcing services to oil & gas clients, the company added.

“The upstream oil & gas industry is facing unprecedented challenges that demand faster and better ways of achieving return on investment. With this acquisition, we are uniquely positioned to offer end-to-end data management services to oil & gas companies globally,” said Rajesh Murthy, executive vice-president and global head of energy, communications and services at Infosys.

Under its new strategy, Infosys has said its focus would be on ‘renew’ and 'new’ – renewing the existing business and service lines with use of newer technologies such as analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning and automation and getting into newer areas.

As a part of this strategy, the company has said it will acquire niche technology companies, not to acquire revenues and scale but to acquire newer capabilities, to improve efficiency of the existing business and be able to cross sale the offerings better.

In April this year, Infosys had acquired Kallidus, a San Francisco-based digital and mobile commerce solutions provider that operates under the brand name Skava, for a total consideration of $120 million (Rs 763 crore). Prior to this, in February this year, the company had acquired Panaya, an automation technology solutions provider, for an all-cash deal of $200 million (Rs 1,244 crore).

“Our oil & gas clients are adjusting to a new normal of lower oil prices. There is an urgency to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their operations in a safe and reliable manner. This acquisition is part of Infosys’ strategy to bring next generation data analytics solutions to the oil & gas industry,” added Sanjay Purohit, executive vice-president and global head, Infosys Consulting. At present, energy and utilities account for close to five per cent of Infosys’ overall revenues.