Mivan buys Medlock telecoms divisions

Mivan, the Northern Ireland construction group, has bought Medlock Group's two telecoms infrastructure divisions from the receiver in a move that saves the jobs of 130 employees.
Following the acquisition, Medlock Communications and UA-Communications will be merged into Mivan Telecom.
Mivan Telecom managing director Alan McCready said: "We believe the telecoms sector is crowded and had been expecting to see consolidation.
"We'd been looking to merge with Medlock or a similar player, but the acquisition was the better way to go.
"Medlock went into receivership because of trading conditions. The downturn in the telecoms infrastructure has lasted 18 months and has been particularly tough in the past six-month period," McCready said.
Mivan Telecom was profitable in the last financial year, but has broken even only in the six months since then.
The merger will create a division within the Mivan Group with a turnover of £30m - double the present size - and McCready said his business will be back in profit in the second half of the current year. "The market is getting better," he said.
Medlock Group had 200 employees and was based in Salford, Manchester. Its third division, involved in steel fabrication work, has not been bought by Mivan.
Mivan Telecom will have 250 staff in all, working from offices in Manchester, Bristol, Glasgow, Dunstable and Northern Ireland.