Dutch-based Boskalis has acquired Altera Infrastructure’s anchor-handling and towage unit, ALP Maritime Services.
The deal, approved by the Brazilian Administrative Council for Economic Defence (CADE), will see the HAL Investments Group-controlled dredging and offshore contractor bolster its capabilities in towing ships, maritime structures, and FPSO units.
Established in 2010, ALP has a fleet of eight of the most robust AHTS vessels in the world, with four Japanese-built units delivered between 2016 and 2018 boasting bollard pulls of over 300t.
“What we see emerging is a second-to-none contractor capacity for long-distance ocean towage,” said Alexandre Vilela, managing director at Rio de Janeiro-based offshore brokerage WSB Advisors, adding that the company is most likely eyeing the FPSO sector, where, for example, Equinor’s Bacalhau unit in Brazil would possibly require three 300t bp vessels for a wet tow since Boskalis’ well-known heavy load carrier Boka Vanguard might not have the capacity to undertake a dry tow.
As for Altera, the strategic exit from the deep-sea towage segment should allow the company to focus on FPSO and shuttle tanker vessels, most of which already operate in key markets in Brazil and the North Sea