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Fugro divests its trenching and cable lay business

Written by Nick Blenkey
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OCTOBER 12, 2017 — Chelmsford, U.K., based Global Marine Group reports that its Global Marine Systems Limited (GMSL) unit has entered into an agreement with Fugro N.V. under which GMG will acquire Fugro’s trenching and cable lay services business.

The purchase consideration, valued at approximately $73 million, consists of the issuance to a subsidiary of Fugro of a 23.6% equity interest in Global Marine Holdings LLC (the parent company of GMSL), valued at $65 million, and an obligation of GMSL to pay Fugro $7.5 million within one year pursuant to a secured vendor.

The acquisition of Fugro’s trenching and cable lay services business involves the transfer to GMG of 23 Fugro employees located in Aberdeen, as well as one vessel (M/V Symphony), two Q1400 trenchers, and two work class remotely operated vehicles.

Built in 2011, the M/V Symphony, a multi-purpose vessel with an extensive 1,400 sq.m deck space, will join GMG’s cable installation and maintenance fleet. In addition, as part of this transaction, Fugro will become the preferred provider of marine site characterization and asset integrity services to GMG.

The acquisition will significantly enhance GMG’s portfolio of service offerings to the market, with a comprehensive range of integrated services, with the immediate capacity to complete additional packages of work in direct response to market demands. This transaction will provide GMG with highly capable, proven assets with a history of delivering complex engineering projects to customers around the world.

Since the founding of Fugro’s trenching and cable lay services business in 2012, Fugro has established a strong presence in the renewables market, working with offshore wind farms including Lincs Wind Farm, Humber Gateway, Gwynt y Môr and Rampion. The business has also conducted multiple operations in oil & gas for major oil companies such as Shell and BP.

“This acquisition is another deliberate step in our strategic plan, adding extensive capabilities of the Fugro trenching and cable lay team to the Global Marine Group and further equipping us with proven assets to support our growth plans,” said Ian Douglas, CEO of Global Marine Group. “I am delighted that Fugro identified us as the right partner to advance their trenching and cable lay business and I am looking forward to welcoming the Aberdeen based trenching team to our corporate family. We are committed to our vision of engineering a clean and connected future and we will continue to build, align and adapt our business in order to meet the evolving needs of our customers.”

“A key objective of Fugro’s ‘Building on Strength’ strategy is to seek a partnership or divest our construction and installation related marine activities,” said Paul van Riel, CEO of Fugro. “We have taken a major step forward in delivering on this strategic objective by contributing our trenching and cable lay services business towards a promising partnership with Global Marine Group. Fugro will participate in a profitable and diversified business with solid growth potential. This step will also support Fugro’s growth in the nautical market segment.”

 

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