Thrustmaster Closes OTC with Dutch Barge Company Deal
Thrustmaster of Texas, a manufacturer of commercial marine propulsion equipment based out of Houston, closed out this year's OTC by placing ink to paper after signing a contract on the trade show floor with the Dutch Barge Company Thursday to supply a complete thruster package. The deal concluded at a press conference inside the Reliant Center hosted by Thrustmaster’s president, Joe Bekker, and Dutch Barge Company's Henk Kapitein. Thrustmaster is staged to supply a complete thruster…
Marine Diesel Propulsion: Where Less Is More
Alstom Diesel engines and its three well-regarded brands — Mirrlees Blackstone, Paxman and Ruston — were recently bought by MAN B&W. Several recent deals have confirmed the continuing trend towards a consolidation of resources in the realm of marine propulsion equipment. The trend, to regular followers of the industry, is hardly a new development. However, a spate of recent new deals and consummations has brought the topic to the forefront again. As reported in the June 2000 edition of Maritime Reporter & Engineering News, the emergence of Rolls Royce as a major force in the field of marine propusion is solidified with a collection of brand name equipment suppliers. The U.K.
Rolls-Royce Proposes $933 Million Offer for Vickers
In yet another case of giant-eating-giant consolidation, Rolls-Royce Plc has made a surprise $933 million agreed cash offer for Vickers Plc, in a move aimed at making Rolls-Royce the global leader in marine power systems. The acquisition would place a significant portion of marine propulsion products - including the Ulstein, Aquamaster, Kamewa, Rauma, Brown Brothers and Mitchell Bearings brands - in one company's control, affecting operators of all vessel types, from VLCCs to tugboats. Ironically, the move comes just as Vickers put the finishing touches on its own revived industrial empire, by acquiring several marine propulsion equipment suppliers in order to dominate a once fragmented piece of the international maritime market.
Playing by the (new) Rules
The increased focused on emission of all types is hardly news to shipowners and marine propulsion suppliers. For decades, entities from individual groups to international policymakers continuously changed the manner in ships and boats are operated. But today perhaps more than ever before, scrutiny of emissions from ships and boats has never been more intense, or as critical in the development, design and marketing of marine propulsion equipment. Diesel engine manufacturers, for example, are spending a good percentage of their sizable R&D budgets dedicated to ensuring their engines are not only compliant with ever-tightening emissions rules and regulations, but to ensure that these same "new" engines operate as reliably and efficiently under the new operating realm.
Rolls-Royce Launches $933 M Offer For Vickers
Just as soon as Vickers Plc put the finishing touches on its revived industrial empire - acquiring a myriad of marine propulsion equipment suppliers in order to dominate a once fragmented piece of the international maritime market - wheels have been set in motion to acquire the goliath itself. Last week Rolls-Royce Plc launched a surprise $933 million (576 million pound) agreed cash offer for Vickers Plc in a move aimed at making it the global leader in marine power systems. But the deal, pitched at a 53 percent premium over Vickers share price last Friday, prompted concern from some analysts who felt Rolls-Royce may be paying too much merely to bolster its marine propulsion business. "This was a big surprise.
