Norwegian maritime group Wilhelmsen has bumped its stake in the logistics services provider NorSea to 99 percent. The company entered the ownership structure of NorSea in 2012 initially with subsequent transactions lifting the share to 75 percent and now to 99 percent. 

Today’s announced increased shareholding was a purchase option that was agreed in 2017 with a set price at 500 million Norwegian Krone ($52.7 million). Former partners Eidesvik Eiendomsinvest and Simon Møkster Eiendom have each sold their shareholdings of circa 12 percent, with NorSea employees retaining the remaining 1 percent of shares.

Wilhelmsen group CEO, Thomas Wilhelmsen says, “Our partnership with NorSea and other shareholders has developed and strengthened over many years, across numerous projects, joint ventures, and indeed shared ambitions. Eidesvik and Møkster have been instrumental in helping to build this connection and we remain immensely appreciative of their efforts.”

Adding, “The latest transaction demonstrates our continued belief in the competence and values of the company and supports the Wilhelmsen group’s long-term strategy towards the supply base industry and other exciting ventures in the ocean space.”

Much of Norway’s activities and ambitions within the current offshore industry and future renewable energies are focused in geographical areas where NorSea owns and operates its bases. This provides a unique opportunity to be part of those value chains, something NorSea and Wilhelmsen are working hand in hand to achieve.

“We are already well-organised to take on exciting initiatives supporting the green shift. Wilhelmsen’s increased ownership of NorSea will be a catalyst to ensure that we continue to build a sustainable supply chain for the oil and gas industry, as well as expand our business portfolio into new activities that support the energy transition,” says Jan Eyvin Wang, Executive Vice President, New Energy division, at Wilhelmsen.

Group CEO of NorSea, John Stangeland says, “Our comprehensive network of offshore supply bases in Scotland, Denmark and Norway, covering the North Sea basin and all the way up the Barents Sea, opens a vast variety of options for us together with Wilhelmsen. Our coastal infrastructure delivers potential within all the mentioned business segments, and having such a strong owner behind us, who share our ambition, means we can pursue opportunities when they come. With Wilhelmsen, we benefit from an enthusiastic partner that actively supports our ventures to increase growth in our various business segments. Their increased ownership will therefore help us in further solidifying NorSea’s position as an important part of the ongoing transformation of the Nordic offshore and energy industries.”