Umoe Announces Strategy for Schat-Harding

Plans by the Norwegian group, Umoe Industri, to merge its lifeboat and davit subsidiary Umoe Schat-Harding with Bergen-based equipment manufacturer TTS Marine ASA have been cancelled. Umoe has called off the proposed all-share merger following a change in the shareholder profile of TTS.

Jarle Roth, executive vice-president of the Umoe Group, says, "Umoe Industri has sold its shares in TTS Marine. This means that the merger between TTS and Umoe Schat-Harding announced on August 16, 2006 will not take place.

Umoe's decision to sell the shares and consequently stop the merger process with TTS was based on the recent development in the shareholder structure in TTS Marine. Another industrial shareholder recently acquired close to 40 percent of the shares in TTS Marine."