Hyder Consulting is in the throes of a bidding war after Japanese consultant Nippon Koei made a counter offer to a deal agreed last week between Hyder and Dutch firm Arcadis.

The new offer which has been agreed between Hyder and Nippon offers Hyder shareholders 680p per share, valuing the company at £268M. This is 30p more per share than the Arcadis deal which valued Hyder at £256M.

“The Hyder board considers that Nippon Koei’s cash offer substantially recognises Hyder’s growth prospects and provides certainty, in cash, to our shareholders today,” said Hyder chief executive Ivor Catto. “The merged group should also provide further opportunities for our employees and clients.”

Nippon Koei president Noriaka Hirose added: “We are a longstanding company with a rich heritage in engineering. We are conservatively run and rarely make acquisitions. But having studied Hyder carefully we are clear how important and strategic this merger is for us.”

In a statement Arcadis said it will consider its position and make an announcement in due course.

Elsewhere, Balfour Beatty has rejected a second approach from Carillion to merge the two companies. It said the board has lost confidence in delivery of a successful transaction and concluded that the current proposal from Carillion is not in the best interests of its shareholders.

In a statement Carillion said it will give further consideration to its position and will make an announcement in due course. In the meantime, it added, there can be no certainty that any offer will be made by Carillion.

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