Citex splits into three

The two deals leave Citex's project management and QS arm, called Citex Project Services, as a separate private firm, owned by the existing Citex shareholders, which include the mangement team, Phoenix Equity Partners and Legal & General Ventures. The firm will still be headed by managing director Ann Bentley.

The £11.5m Carillion deal, for Citex's £25m-turnover management services division, will see chief executive Oliver Jones and chief operating officer Steve Parkinson move over to Carillion with most of its 200 staff. It is due to be completed early next month.

Jones said the Carillion deal was a strategic decision by the firm to grow its facilities management operations. He said: "Going into a bigger entity was ideal for us. It's been hard work (doing the deal) – it's nice to be in a position to be clear and open about what we are doing."

Jones said the remaining project services business would be a "focused construction consultancy". Although Carillion has bought the global right to the Citex brand the project services business can keep the Citex name for up to a year, Jones added.

The Asian deal, due for completion at the end of September, follows a sale memorandum being sent out by the firm for the £11.5m-turnover business in March.

The deal, the details of which are undisclosed, creates a 300-strong, £17m business for EC Harris in Asia. The firm said it planned to double this in the next three years. Citex Asia managing director Andy Ritchie will join the EC Harris Asia regional board as part of the acquisition.

The move is something of a blow for Citex, which was created in 1998 after a management buyout of listed quantity surveyor Bucknall Group. After that deal Jones said he expected the firm would refloat as a FTSE 250 player with a market capitalisation of £250m in a few years' time. The firm posted a pre-tax loss of £702,000 on a turnover of £55m for the year to April 2001.