Bureau Veritas purchases casualty consultancy

The French classification society has acquired UK-based international consultancy TMC Marine, a provider of pre- and post-casualty services for the marine industry since 1979.    Bureau Veritas has acquired UK-based international maritime consultancy TMC Marine, according to a statement from the company.
   The French classification society, which is listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange, said TMC Marine has provided pre- and post-casualty services for the marine industry since 1979.
   Headquartered in London, TMC focuses primarily on marine claims and accident investigations, salvage and wreck removal consultancy and marine expert witness services for a client base that spans P&I clubs, law firms, marine insurers, salvage companies and ship owners.
   The company employs over 50 people, with offices in the United States, China, Singapore and Australia, and generated revenues of 8.5 million euros (U.S. $ 9.7 million) in 2015.
   Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
   “Our Marine & Offshore business, the historical activity of Bureau Veritas, is one of our eight key growth initiatives to 2020,” Bureau Veritas CEO Didier Michaud-Daniel said of the purchase. “As such, it is evolving rapidly. We are diversifying our service portfolio and developing our technological leadership in order to meet all our clients’ expectations in risk management.
   “TMC is a recognized brand that enables the Group to enhance its offering to the marine insurance consultancy market, thereby expanding the services that we already provide in offshore to the maritime market,” he added.
   “We are very happy to be joining the expanding Marine & Offshore division of Bureau Veritas, a leading service provider to the international marine industry. This is a strategic alliance that will provide TMC with technical synergies and greatly enhance the services we can offer to new and existing clients while at the same time continuing our plan of further geographic expansion,” said Tony Bowman, chairman of TMC.