TOKYO - Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. on Thursday said that it will buy the small and medium size gas turbine business of US air-engine maker Pratt & Whitney.

The acquisition will be another move by Mitsubishi Heavy to increase its international competitiveness, following its recent merger of thermal power generation business with that of Hitachi Ltd.

Mitsubishi Heavy agreed with the parent company of Pratt & Witney, the United Technologies Corp., to acquire Pratt & Whitney Power Systems (PWPS). The amount to be paid for the acquisition was not disclosed, Japanese media reported.

PWPS's aero-derivative gas turbines, which have been acclaimed for their compact design and rapid start-up time, are expected to draw demand as emergency power sources complementary to renewable energy power sources in the future, Japanese Kyodo News Agency cited Mitsubishi Heavy as saying.