MOL dives into subsea support market

Japanese ocean carrier and its parent company are acquiring 50 percent stake in AKOFS Offshore AS.    Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. (MOL) and parent company Mitsui & Co. Ltd. have agreed to purchase a 50 percent stake in subsea support vessel operator AKOFS Offshore AS for roughly $142.5 million, the companies said in a joint statement.
   Following the transaction, MOL and Mitsui each will own a 25 percent stake in the Oslo, Norway-based firm, which specializes in construction, maintenance and repairs for offshore petroleum and gas fields. Current owner Akastor ASA will retain the remaining 50 percent ownership stake.
   AKOFS currently operates three subsea support vessels, two of which are chartered to the Brazilian state oil company Petróleo Brasileiro S.A., while the third is slated to be chartered by Equinor Energy AS, formerly known as Statoil Petroleum AS.
   “MOL’s acquisition of shares in AKOFS means MOL will become more deeply involved in the operation and ship management of subsea support vessels, marking its full-scale move into this field,” the company said of the deal.
   “The subsea support vessel business requires advanced design and operation technologies and is a field in which MOL can draw upon its 50-plus years of experience in management of cable-laying ships,” it added. “MOL anticipates stable demand and earnings in the subsea field and plans to get involved in every phase of operations, from research of seabed petroleum and gas fields to construction, maintenance, repair work and removal as it strives to expand the business.”
   MOL said it also will explore potential additional collaborative opportunities with the Aker Group, which owns Akastor.