Rig Tender to acquire three shipping companies

PT Rig Tender Indonesia Tbk (RIGS), publicly listed marine transportation company, plans to acquire three shipping companies from the Singapore-based Scomi Marine Services Pte Ltd (SMS) for about US$57 million, Investor Daily reported on Tuesday.

The three shipping companies are CH Logistics Pte Ltd (CHL), CH ShipManagement Pte Ltd (CHS), and Grundtvig Marine Pte Ltd (GM). GM has a 95 percent stake in local shipping company PT Batuah Abadi lines (BAL).

Mukhnizam Bin Mahmud, the director of Rig Tender, said that the acquisition was considered an affiliated transaction because SMS is the majority shareholder of Rig Tender. The acquistion was also considered material because its value exceeded a 50 percent of its equity.

He said that Rig Tenders would issue vendor notes worth $57 million to finance the acquisition of the three companies. The company would soon hold a shareholders meeting to ask for approval for the acquisition.

?The acquisition is expected to strengthen business synergy and cut operating costs so that the financial performance will be able to improve in the future,? he said.

Rig Tenders is engaged in the chartering of tugs and barges to transport coal and other bulk aggregates to coal mining industry, as well as chartering of supply vessels and accommodation and work over barges to support offshore oil and gas operations. (*)