CHEMICALS giant ICI has agreed to sell its engineering consultancy subsidiary to Swiss technology firm ABB.

The Northern Echo exclusively revealed on Saturday that ICI had plans to sell its Eutech Engineering Solutions business, which employs 300 at the Belasis Business Park, on Teesside, as part of its continued shake-up of its operations.

Eutech was founded in 1993 to help in manufacturing and engineering projects for ICI and its clients outside the business. Its head office is in Northwich, Cheshire, where it employs another 250.

It supplies a range of consulting services in manufacturing and engineering for ICI and the company's external clients, including project implementation and management.

The company has a global client base of 150 chemicals, petrochemicals and pharmaceutical firms.

Last year Eutech reported revenues of about £55m.

ICI said it would use the proceeds from the sale to reduce its debts, although the financial details of the transaction have not been disclosed.

Jorgen Centerman, ABB president and chief executive officer, said the acquisition was a boost for his company.

He said: "This acquisition will help boost ABB's know-how as a supplier of automation solutions to the chemical, petrochemical and pharmaceutical sectors."

Zurich-based ABB employs in excess of 160,000 people in more than 100 countries across the globe.

The disposal comes hard on the heels of last month's £325m agreement by ICI to sell its industrial chemical operations.

The businesses, Chlor-Chemicals, Klea and Crosfield, were sold to privately-owned chemicals group Ineos. The 120 staff who worked at the Teesside operations of Chlor-Chemicals were transferred to the new business, now to be known as Ineos-Chlor.

That all but completed the chemical firm's recent transformation. Over the past three years, ICI has been repositioning itself in the industrial market, from a high-volume bulk chemicals business to a speciality products and paints business.

The sale programme was prompted by ICI's acquisition of the Unilever speciality chemicals business in 1997.

ICI's shares were up 15p on the news, at 500p