Suretank has acquired UK based service company Prior Diesel in a spate of merger and takeover deals in the global oil and gas market.
The acquisition was made with the support of Ulster Bank’s Corporate and Institutional Banking team.
The two companies will have a combined revenue of $120mn and over 800 employees.
Suretank is an Ireland based supplier of tanks and CCUs (Cargo Carrying Units) to the offshore oil and gas industry with established presence in the Middle East.
Prior Diesel specialises in the design, manufacture and well service equipment including nitrogen pumps, specialist skids, coil tubing and wireline units.
Prior Diesel said its joint managing directors Chris Conroy and Gordon MacLean, together with founder and chairman Archie MacLean, will remain with the business.
“This new strategic relationship with Suretank is an exciting and important move for Prior Diesel,” said Conroy. “It represents an opportunity for the business to grow and develop into new markets by taking advantage of Suretank’s strong global presence and marketing reach to strengthen our brand and reputation.”
John Fitzgerald, CEO at Suretank, said: “We are delighted to welcome Prior Diesel into the Suretank family as we continue to develop Suretank as the leading global provider of engineered solutions to the offshore oil and gas industry with the support of Ulster Bank. It will be business as usual – only better – at Prior Diesel. We do not anticipate any changes in how we do business operationally, but will continue to strive to strengthen and develop all aspects of Prior Diesel’s customer centered solutions.
The news of Prior Diesel’s acquisition by Suretank comes in a surge of oil and gas M&A deals, which, experts say, are a result of the falling oil price and the subsequent reshuffling of the market- a trend that is set to continue throughout 2015.
Europe and North America are set for the highest number of takeovers and acquisitions, reports claim, with the Middle East and Asia not immune to the global trends.
Smaller oil and gas companies with weak balance sheets are the most vulnerable to a takeover approach amid the slump in crude prices, Bloomberg’s report claims.
The report said that also likely is a bid for the $118 billion producer, BP, which has been valued at one of “the lowest price-earnings multiples among its peers”.
