Ampcontrol CEO Dr Alan Broadfoot said the move into markets such as South Africa and Russia was a critical component of the company's globalisation strategy.

“With operations established throughout Australia as well as in China, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, the addition of these two operations to the group enhances our ability to provide high quality products and service to our global customers,” he said.

Both operations are positioned in rapidly growing mining regions and are involved in the design, manufacture and service of flameproof and intrinsically safe switchgear and electronic equipment to the mining sector.

The Russian operation is based in Kemerovo, in the southern part of western Siberia, 3500km east of Moscow. Located in the heart of the Kuznetsk Basin, one of the biggest coal mining areas in the world, it represents a significant opportunity for the growth of the group in the mining sector.

The investment in South Africa provides the platform for Ampcontrol’s entry into the heavy industry, petrochemical, oil and gas, infrastructure and power distribution sectors in the region as well as providing access to other high growth mining areas such as Botswana, Zambia and Mozambique.

The South African and Russian coal mining sectors are ranked fifth and sixth in the world.

Ampcontrol was founded in 1968 and is one of Australia’s largest privately owned suppliers of electrical and electronic products to the power, energy and mining sectors.

In the past 18 months, Ampcontrol has grown from a national to a global business with operations now established in six countries and more than 800 employees in the group.