Ezra spins off yard operations into separate listed company

OCTOBER 18, 2012 — Singapore’s Ezra Holdings has spun off its engineering and fabrication operations in Vietnam and Houston, Texas.

Triyards Holdings Limited made its debut today on the mainboard of the Singapore Exchange. Ezra Holdings distributed Triyards shares as dividends in specie to shareholders on the basis of one Triyards share for every 10 Ezra shares held. Before the listing, Triyards, was wholly-owned by Ezra. Even after the share distribution, Ezra remains a substantial shareholder in Triyards, holding a 67percent stake.

Mr. Wong Bheet Huan, the CEO of Triyards Holdings Limited, said: “We are delighted with the successful listing of Triyards on the SGX mainboard, which will allow us to chart our own future while remaining a valuable member of the Ezra Group. This listing will enable us to build up our brand further and exploit growth opportunities that will propelus forward in our journey to becoming a world-class provider of engineering and fabrication solutions to the offshore sector.”

Though Triyards describes itself as an in the engineering and fabrication business, by most definition’s it would seem to be as much a shipbuilder as a fabricator.

Triyards has an orderbook that stood at $613.1 million at August 31, 2012 and currently has several major projects in hand. They include the construction of sophisticated vessels such as the Lewek Constellation (see picture), an ice-class deepwater multi-lay vessel with heavy-lift capabilities, as well as the second generation design of a 450-foot leg length mobile self-elevating unit (SEU), accommodation and heavy-lift construction rig.

Having built and delivered six first generation SEUs since 2007, Triyards believes it has established a strong lead in the fabrication of these technologically advanced niche jack-up rigs in Southeast Asia.

Looking to the future, Mr. Wong said: “We will be moving into new product categories such as aluminum-based vessels, including patrol boats and utility ships, and develop our own offshore heavy-lift equipment product line in our Houston facility. We are also considering expanding our reach to new markets, particularly Brazil and Australia.”

Triyards currently owns and operates two fabrication yards in Ho Chi Minh City (Triyards SSY) and Vung Tau (Triyards SOFEL) in Vietnam, as well as another in Houston in the U.S. (Triyards Houston).

Triyards SOFEL and Triyards SSY are equipped with heavy-lift gantry cranes and deepwater berths, and both yards have the capability to undertake large-scale projects to fabricate different components of fixed platforms, as well as vessel conversion and construction.

Triyards Houston produces equipment such as cranes, A-frames and winches, which can be installed on the self-elevating units and offshore support and construction vessels fabricated in Vietnam.