October 11, 2008

Topaz acquires Doha Marine for QAR 450 million

Khaleej Times reported that Topaz Energy & Marine Limited has made an entry into the hydrocarbon market in Qatar. With the acquisition of the Doha Marine Services’ fleet of 14 owned and managed vessels, Topaz has added 4 of its own vessels into Qatar to corner 18% of the offshore marine services sector in Qatar. The entire transaction is valued at just over QAR 450 million and will be concluded in phases in compliance with the regulatory processes prevalent in Qatar.

According to a statement released by Topaz, the acquisition increases the total size of the Topaz marine fleet to 91 vessels which includes 16 vessels under construction as part of its fleet acquisition and renewal strategy. DMS is recognized as a leading marine services company and will be the 6th operating company in the Topaz offshore vessel fleet, joining NICO Middle East, NICO Far East, BUE Caspian, BUE Kazakh and BUE Turkmen, with a 7th marine enterprise already under formation in Saudi Arabia.

The acquisition financing was syndicated by Calyon Corporate and Investment Bank of Dubai, acting as the mandated lead arranger and Barclays Bank Plc, First Gulf Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and HSBC Bank Middle East acting as joint lead arrangers.

Mr Fazel Fazelbhoy CEO of Topaz said that "Our intention is now to add value with our international experience and well established HSEQ systems to ensure that this fleet operates at the highest levels of operational integrity."

Mr Samir J Fancy chairman of Renaissance said that "The DMS acquisition is a major event in our stated strategic intent to increase the size and geographical spread of our offshore support vessel fleet. The cornerstone of Qatar’s booming economy is its hydrocarbon resources. The world’s largest known non associated offshore gas field is in Qatari territory; placing the country third in terms of world natural gas reserves. Qatar offers great opportunity to a quality service provider like Topaz and we shall certainly consider further investment in Qatar in both our onshore and offshore services. The board is absolutely delighted with this outcome."