Shanahan signs €11m energy deal in Pakistan

Shanahan Engineering has landed an €11 million contract in Pakistan, its first major venture in the country. The Dublin-based group will work with Lahore-based company Consolidated Agencies to acquire a power generation plant to help address Pakistan's growing electricity generation crisis.

The four-year contract is one of the largest awarded to an Irish company in Pakistan. Consolidated Agencies chief executive Rizwan Fareed was in Dublin yesterday to sign the deal.

The two companies were initially introduced by Enterprise Ireland. Shanahan Engineering specialises in the design, construction and operation of power plants and oil and gas supply infrastructure.

Pakistan is struggling to cope with growing demand for power. This has compounded a situation where falling water levels are reducing output from its hydro stations.

Under pressure to accelerate construction of new power stations, the government has been turning to the private sector. Consolidated Agencies, which operates across a number of sectors, including utilities, has been seeking a foreign partner for some time.

Liam Shanahan, managing director of the Irish group, said he was delighted with the venture, which would expand its presence in the region.

"This is a new initiative, which is closely linked to the work that Enterprise Ireland is doing in the region," he said yesterday. "Pakistan has a significant power deficit that it has to address. There could be a series of transactions on the back of this one. We would hope to build our business in the area. Already, today, we have had discussions about a follow-on transaction there."

Conor Fahy, regional director of Enterprise Ireland for southern Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said Shanahan Engineering's success was a "good example of the innovative, international-driven business model that Enterprise Ireland is keen to replicate".

"This is the biggest deal by an Irish company in Pakistan for two or three years. It is a new beginning and we are breaking into new areas."

Mr Fahy said he was very bullish about the prospects for Irish companies in the Middle East region. "There are lots of opportunities for us and we would hope to build a significant pipeline of deals that will see a significant level of announcements over the next 18-24 months."

Apart from signing the Shanahan deal, Mr Fareed will tour Irish third-level institutions on his visit with a view to bringing Pakistani students over here next year.

It is understood Consolidated Agencies is also hoping to build links with other Irish businesses across a range of technology, engineering and property management sectors.

Shanahan Engineering was founded in 1979 and is owned by Liam Shanahan, who won the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award in 2003, and other family members.