Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. (Boskalis) increased its stake in Fugro to 25.1%, just four months after acquiring 14.8% in the company.
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Image from Boskalis. |
In a statement, Boskalis stresses that this is not a step towards making an offer, just that the company views Fugro as an interesting company with strong market positions in its core activities.
Boskalis says it remains focused on offshore and maritime infrastructure, making use of the combination of high-end know-how and maritime assets and that this fits very well with the activities of Fugro.
In early November 2014, Boskalis acquired an initial 14.8% interest in Fugro. At that time, Boskalis CEO Peter Berdowski, Boskalis said that Fugro is an attractive company with activities that fit together well with those of Boskalis. For many years, we have worked together on numerous projects throughout the world and there are strong similarities in the working environment and culture, Berdowski said.
Berdowski went on to say that Boskalis would like to speak and explore with the management of Fugro possibilities for cooperation. We support the recently realigned strategy of Fugro, and do not intend to make an offer.
Just days later on 10 November, Fugro released its own statement confirming that the company intends to stay independent and highly values its position as the world leading independent geotechnical and survey services and data provider.
Fugro also said that the company does intend to explore the possibility of partnerships with other companies regarding its subsea division, including with Boskalis.
Previous Boskalis takeovers
In March 2014, Boskalis acquired Fairmount Marine B.V. and Fairmount Ocean Towage Company B.V. from French group Louis Dreyfus Armateurs.
In 2012, the Netherlands-based company acquired Dutch marine contractor Dockwise. With the Dockwise takeover, Boskalis gradually increased its stake in Dockwise to eventually become the largest stakeholder in the company. This lead to a US$737 million offer, with the official acquisition taking place in 2013.
Read more:
Boskalis acquires stake in Fugro
Fugro wants to stay independent
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