£50m sale of subsea group

Ecosse Subsea, the Aberdeenbased subsea technology company, has been acquired by Houston-based Oceaneering International for £50 million.

Ecosse builds and operates offshore engineering and seabed preparation, route clearance and trenching tools for submarine cables and pipelines on an integrated basis that includes vessels, remotely operated vehicles (ROVS) and survey services.

Enabling technologies acquired in yesterday’s transaction include Ecosse’s modular Scar Seabed System, capable of completing the scope of the entire trenching work, including route preparation, boulder clearance, trenching and backfill, and its newly developed Scarjet trenching system.

Mike Wilson, a consultant and former chairman of Ecosse, said the deal was a “strategic opportunity” for the Scottish group.

He said Oceaneering had a global presence and innovative technologies. “Together we can establish a stronger platform to take on even larger and higher profile projects in the renewables and oil and gas industries,” Wilson added.

Roderick A. Larson, president and CEO of Oceaneering, said, “We are pleased to complete the acquisition of Ecosse, which we believe offers Oceaneering the opportunity to expand our service line capabilities and grow our market position within the offshore renewable energy market, and provide our customers with proven tools to optimize installation projects.

“The addition of Ecosse reflects our commitment to expand into the adjacent renewable energy market to more comprehensively serve the offshore energy industry. We expect the acquisition to be accretive to Oceaneering’s 2018 cash flow and earnings.”