Acquisitive UK engineering company AMEC has bought Australian project services consultancy Currie & Brown for AU$36.4 million (£20.2 million) in cash.

Currie & Brown is a provider of consulting services to the oil and gas, mining and infrastructure sectors. The Brisbane-based company employs 200 staff and also has offices in Adelaide, Gold Coast, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney. 

The deal follows AMEC's acquisition of Perth-based project delivery business GRD in November 2009 and brings the total number of people employed by the group in Australia to almost 1,000.

Neil Bruce, executive director of AMEC, said: 'Acquiring Currie & Brown is another important step in our strategy of providing independent business consultancy services worldwide.'

AMEC reported revenue of £1.3 billion and pre-tax profits of £88.4 million in the six months to June 2009.