India’s Devyani International on Monday said it will begin operating KFC outlets in Thailand after it acquired Restaurants Development Co in deal a worth US$128.9 million, expected to be completed by March 2024.

The Thai restaurant operator runs 274 KFC outlets in the Southeast Asian country and employs more than 4,500 people.

Devyani acquired the company through its Dubai unit in which it owns a 51 per cent stake, while Singapore-based private investment firm Temasek Holdings owns the remaining.

“Thailand is a strong poultry market in its basket of meat consumption and we believe there is an opportunity available for the market to grow even further,” the Devyani said in a statement.

The acquisition will add to Devyani’s 500 KFC outlets in India, Nepal and Nigeria. The company also operates other quick service restaurants (QSR) in India such as Pizza Hut and Costa Coffee.

• Reporting by Kashish Tandon in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman, of Reuters.