Infosys acquires oil and gas specialist Noah Consulting for $70 mln

oilInfosys Ltd, one of India’s top IT consulting companies, said it had agreed to acquire Texas-based Noah Consulting LLC, “a leading provider advanced information management consulting services for the oil and gas industry” for $70 mln cash.

Noah Consulting helps upstream oil and gas companies, including super majors, independents and oil field service companies plan, architect and deploy information solutions to unlock the value of their oil and gas assets.

“Noah’s deep domain expertise in upstream oil and gas, coupled with their tools, solution accelerators and proprietary methodologies, makes them a leader in driving strategic data management engagements.

“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 on a global scale to oil and gas clients,” Infosys said.

John Ruddy, President of Noah Consufting said the deal would let the companies “effect transformational change” for oil and gas clients by using information management to integrate supply chain, safety, environmental and financial data with geoscience, engineering and other operational and technical data – an industry challenge that has never been addressed effectively. We look forward to making a difference together.

Infosys, which has often faced investor criticism for sitting on a huge pile of cash, has promised in the past to deploy the money to improve its business. But like most of its Indian peers, the company has been extremely selective, even conservative, when it comes to acquisitions.

Commenting on the acquisition, Rajesh Murthy, EVP and Global Head of Energy, Communications and Services, Infosys said, “The upstream oil and gas industry is facing unprecedented challenges that demand faster and better ways of achieving return on investment. This requires a well-defined and executed information and data management strategy that will allow companies to increase efficiencies across the lifecycle – from exploration to production. With this acquisition, we are uniquely positioned to offer end-to- end data management services to oil and gas companies globally.”

“Our oil and 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 and gas industry” said Sanjay Purohit, EVP and Global Head of Infosys Consulting.

The transaction is expected to close before the end of the third quarter of FY 2016, subject to customary closing conditions.