Doshion eyes buyouts in India, abroad

In a bid to expand its services portfolio, Ahmedabad-based water treatment company Doshion Limited is eyeing buyouts in India and abroad.

The company has identified six small and mid-sized companies engaged in water treatment, water management and water distribution services in India, Singapore and Indonesia. It is expected to wrap up an acquisition deal in the next four months.

"We are looking at closing one or two acquisitions in the water management services space this year," said Ashit Doshi, managing director of Doshion, adding that they were targeting companies in the range of Rs 20 crore to Rs 200 crore, for acquisition.

Doshion has recently bagged a BOT (build-operate-transfer) contract from the Rajasthan government to convert saline water into potable water and supply the same to the state's public works department. The two-year project would cater to around 2000 villages in the state in the first phase.

"We want to expand our value chain to cash in on the increasing demand for water management services in India, which is growing at around 16 per cent. On the industrial front, the market for water management services is close to Rs 4,000 crore in the country. If we include municipal and civil services, the market is close to Rs 20,000 crore," Doshi added.

The company has recently entered into a joint venture with Veolia Water Solutions and Technologies, a European company in engaged the business of water treatment, which was aimed at providing water treatment applications pertaining to industrial, municipal and other water needs in India.

Doshion clocked a turnover of Rs 220 crore last year, and expects to close the current financial year with revenues of Rs 275 crore.