UPDATE 1-INTERVIEW-Sulzer says can go it alone

(Adds Renova comment, background, details)

By Katie Reid

ZURICH, April 22 (Reuters) - Swiss engineering firm Sulzer (SUN.S) launched a verbal counterattack on Sunday, two days after investors seized a controlling stake in a surprise move that fuelled speculation that it could be forced to merge with another conglomerate.

Sulzer chairman Ulf Berg called "deplorable" the way investment group Renova, controlled by Russian billionaire Victor Vekselberg, and Austrian investor Victory amassed the stake without public knowledge and argued for Sulzer's independence, saying it had the firepower needed to go it alone.

"If laws have been violated it is up to the Ministry of Economics and the Federal Banking Commission to check," Berg said.

Victory could not immediately be reached for comment.

"The Renova Group always complied and will be complying with all relevant laws and procedures concerning transfer and disclosure of securities transactions," a spokesman for Renova said.

Speculation hotted up over the weekend that Sulzer's new shareholders could seek a shotgun wedding between Sulzer and industrial group Oerlikon (OERL.VX), also controlled by Victory, to create a huge conglomerate.

"From a size perspective, we have the right market capitalisation to remain independent," Berg told Reuters in an interview on Sunday.

"We do not perceive our capability to win orders is being compromised by our size. By contrast, we are growing faster than many companies and competitors," he said.

Berg said combining Sulzer, which is itself seeking to take over British peer Bodycote (BOY.L), with Oerlikon made little sense.

"I do not believe that there are any significant synergies with Oerlikon and neither are there any other benefits. There are a lot of disparities in culture," Berg said.

Renova said on Friday it had bought an effective 32 percent stake in Sulzer in a joint venture with Victory, with 18 percent held in shares and another 14 percent taken via options -- a stake worth around 2.1 billion francs.

Renova and Victory would be legally bound to make a takeover offer for Sulzer if the stake reached 33.3 percent.

Renova said the stake in Sulzer, whose activities range from pumps for the oil and gas sector to surface coatings, would be held via Everest Beteiligungs GmbH, a joint venture between Renova and Victory.