Q: How has the business evolved from its inception to the present day?

A: The genesis of the MG Group (MGG) can be traced back to 1998 with the establishment of MG Consultants (MGC), which is the consulting arm of MGG.

In 1998, the local consulting sector was dominated by international companies with a few local companies acting as sub-consultants. MGC devised a strategic plan to compete with these international firms by forming an alliance with Engineering Consultants (ECL), one of the largest consulting companies in Sri Lanka.

This strategic alliance proved instrumental for MGC and ECL to accumulate the necessary expertise and experience over a few years to compete with international entities. And this successful alliance facilitated the eventual acquisition of ECL by MGC.

MGC and ECL secured their first project in 2010 as wholly owned Sri Lankan companies, successfully competing with international giants in the sector. The two companies have now emerged as sector leaders, delivering numerous landmark projects. This success and the positive change in the consulting sector led other local entities to follow suit.

Further fuelling MGC’s global ambition, UK-based Roughton Group was acquired in 2017, expanding its presence to over 30 countries. Roughton UK has delivered some of Britain’s iconic structures including the London Underground and has experience in delivering projects in over 100 countries.

Establishing MGG as the holding company enabled us to venture into renewable energy as ECL Energy, a company that provides ‘water to wire’ solutions. It is presently active in African and Asian markets, providing renewable energy solutions.

The diversification continued with the group swiftly acknowledging the importance of venturing into technology. A substantial investment was made by the group in Nimbus Ventures – a cutting-edge business intelligence platform and state-of-the-art Internet of Things (IoT) based system designed for the monitoring and management of assets.

Diversifying further, the MG Group invested in small tea plantations and the New Vithanakande Tea Factory. This factory is synonymous with the production of premium black tea sourced from green tea leaves from approximately 6,000 smallholders.

These investments and acquisitions over two decades have made the MG Group a leading diversified entity headquartered in Sri Lanka, and it is currently operating in over 30 countries and across four continents.

Q: What is the expertise your group holds that makes it stand apart?

A: The group’s leadership in each of its business sectors and access to foreign markets makes it stand apart. We offer a range of infrastructure services including end-to-end infrastructure consultancy services, from project conceptualisation to final delivery, backed by in-house engineers, architects, quantity surveyors and project managers.

Our infrastructure solutions span several sectors: roads, ports, urban upgrading, buildings, renewable energy, water, and wastewater and irrigation. With each sector bringing its own technically demanding challenges, the group too brings revolutionary solutions to bear on the successful completion of its projects.

Furthermore, the group’s compliance, governance, knowledgeable team and global exposure lend it a unique competitive edge in local and global markets.

Over the decades, the group has attracted a host of accolades, the latest being at the National Business Excellence Awards in 2021 and 2022.

Q: And what are the group’s recently completed and ongoing infrastructure projects?

A: The group’s trailblazing ways have helped it to transform the infrastructure landscape in emerging economies with current projects such as engaging in construction supervision of the Port Access Elevated Highway Project in Sri Lanka; designing roads and bridges for the Land Sector Development Project in Samoa; construction supervision services of the Balykchy-Kochkor-Epkin road the Kyrgyz Republic; construction supervision of the Regional Roads Development Project in Uzbekistan; and technical assistance on the Great North Road in Zambia among others.

Some past projects include the construction supervision of the Central Expressway Section II in Sri Lanka, and Corridor 5c motorway in Bosnia and Herzegovina; and design and supervision of the Road Network Improvement and Maintenance Project II in Bangladesh.

In Sri Lanka, our projects have also included the designing, building and financing of the dairy processing factory for Milco, and design, construction supervision and project management of NSBM Green University.

Q: Could you shed light on the challenges the group faced due to the economic crisis?

A: The infrastructure sector faced difficulties persisting from the onset of the pandemic to the current economic deceleration. However, the global footprint of the MG Group played a pivotal role in effectively managing the impact of the crisis to a significant extent.

There were considerable challenges in the renewable energy, IT and plantation sectors as well.

Our strategic presence, and capable and dedicated global team, provide us with a distinctive advantage to meet these challenges.

However, there is immense growth potential in global infrastructure, renewable energy and IT – particularly in the African and Asian regions.

Furthermore, the anticipated development of infrastructure in Port City Colombo will provide greater opportunities in the local market where we already have the capability to provide state-of-the-art infrastructure solutions.

As a proud change agent, the MG Group will continue to take decisive actions, driving success and showcasing Sri Lanka’s capabilities on the global stage.

– Compiled by Yamini Sequeira

CONTACT DETAILS

Telephone: 2806028 | Email: mail@mgconsultants.lk | Website: www.mgconsultants.lk