Norwegian company Akastor has signed a share purchase agreement to transfer a 50% stake in Akofs Offshore to Mitsui & Co and Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) for around $142.5m.
The transaction will enable the parties to form a joint venture (JV) for the AKOFS Offshore business.
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Under the agreement, Mitsui and MOL will acquire 25% of the shares in Akofs Offshore, while the remaining 50% interest will be owned by Akastor.
The consideration, to be paid in cash, is based on a ‘locked box’ principle as from 31 December 2017.
Akofs Offshore focuses on providing vessel-based subsea well construction and intervention services.
The company currently owns and operates multiple vessels, including Skandi Santos and Aker Wayfarer, both of which are working for Petrobras in Brazil.
The Akofs Offshore fleet also includes Akofs Seafarer vessel, which recently secured a long-term contract from Equinor, with work set to start from 2020.
The agreement between the associated parties is governed by another shareholders agreement, which was signed simultaneously with the share purchase agreement.
Under the shareholders agreement, the parties agreed to certain preferential rights regarding Akofs Seafarer operations, including a guaranteed preferred return of up to $46m to Mitsui and MOL during the first six years of operations.
Furthermore, Akastor is also eligible to claim earn-out payments up to $45m during the first seven years of operation.
The transaction is subject to approval from competition authorities and other customary conditions and is expected to close in the third quarter of this year.
