Lloyd’s Register has acquired the business and principal assets of the Mumbai-based nuclear risk specialists, Reltech Consulting (Reltech), in a move designed to further strengthen its historic presence in the Indian energy sector.
The business and assets of Reltech, which provides safety-management services to a multinational civil nuclear client base, have been transferred to the newly formed LR Scandpower Risk Consultancy Pvt. Ltd., completing another major step in the strategic expansion of Lloyd’s Register’s global nuclear business.
Scandpower AS, which provides independent technical risk services to the energy and transport industries, was purchased by Lloyd’s Register in 2009.
“This is an important acquisition for Scandpower in that it greatly strengthens our presence in India, one of the world’s fastest growing markets for nuclear power,” said Bjorn Inge Bakken, Chief Executive of the Scandpower Group. “We have a long history of activity in India, where all existing nuclear power plants and regulators already use our RiskSpectrum software. Building a stronger local presence gives us the additional manpower and technical resources we need to serve the expanding Indian market and our global nuclear clients.”
India has very ambitious plans for its nuclear power sector; its national energy plan calls for the electricity-generating capacity of the nuclear sector to increase its market-share to 25% from the current 2.9% in the next two decades.
Reltech was formed in 2005 with the primary goal of establishing the first consultancy in India capable of providing probabilistic safety assessments to international standards. LR Scandpower Risk Consultancy, set up in May, will be led by Devi Kompella, Reltech’s former Managing Director, who has more than 20 years experience in the industry.
“The Indian civil nuclear industry is poised to take a big leap forward and many opportunities are opening up. While Reltech was already established as a quality service provider, as a relatively small company, we faced the regular limitations to our growth. So I felt it imperative to join an established organisation with a global presence and resources,” said Ms Kompella.
“My association with Scandpower started in the late 90s, so I am well aware of their commanding market position and ambitious vision,” she said. “I have personally experienced their great warmth and work culture. Lloyd’s Register has been a renowned brand for some 250 years so, when the opportunity came, there was no looking back. In fact, I am now looking forward to working with my new colleagues and making our branch a hub for nuclear safety activities in India.”
While India is an emerging market, Bakken said it held great potential as a recruiting hub for highly educated nuclear consultants. It also has strong business relations with emerging nuclear countries in the Middle East, another important region for Scandpower’s global nuclear strategy.
The company’s RiskSpectrum software is used outside the nuclear sector, including in the oil and gas industry where drilling firms are excited about its potential to provide real-time assessments of safety-critical equipment on their rigs.
Bakken said the new company would be used as a stepping stone to expand Scandpower’s risk-management consultancy services to India’s growing oil and gas sector.