STX OSV Becomes VARD
Shipbuilders & designers STX OSV adopt new brand name following sale of STX Europe’s majority stake in the company to Fincantieri Oil & Gas. Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of VARD, Roy Reite, said, “I am excited to announce that VARD will be our new name. It conveys a sense of stability and strength, relevance and flexibility. More importantly, it reflects our long-standing Norwegian heritage, as well as our leading position within the offshore and specialized vessels industry globally.
Fincantieri Said to Bid for STX OSV Stake
Fincantieri SpA, the Italian state-controlled shipbuilder, is among final bidders for a stake in STX OSV Holdings Ltd., the world’s largest maker of offshore support vessels, said two people with knowledge of the matter. An investment fund also made an offer, one person said, declining to identify the bidder. South Korea’s STX Group, which is seeking to sell its 51 percent stake in Singapore-listed STX OSV, may conclude a deal next month, the person said, asking not to be identified because the process is confidential. STX Group’s stake is worth $809 million based on yesterday’s closing price, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Singapore’s takeover guidelines require any buyer of more than 30 percent of a publicly-traded company to make an offer for the rest of the stock.
STX Europe Sells Shares in STX OSV Holdings Ltd.
STX Europe Holding AS, a wholly owned subsidiary of STX Europe AS (STX Europe), has agreed to sell part of its equity interests in STX OSV Holdings Limited (STX OSV) to investment funds affiliated with OZ Management LP (Och-Ziff). The placement of 215,590,000 ordinary shares by STX Europe will be at a price of S$1.33 per share. This amounts to approximately 18.27% of the total issued share capital of STX OSV. Following the sale, STX Europe will hold 598,851,000 shares in STX OSV equal to a majority shareholding of 50.75%. STX Europe underscored that the placement was made with the objective of improving the trading liquidity of STX OSV. As a result of placement, Och-Ziff's shareholding in STX OSV will increase to 20.0%.
