Ezra buys US$250mln fabrication facility in Houston

Well-equipped 650,000 sq.ft. yard in the US allows the company to expand engineering activities in the West.

Ezra Holdings Limited (Ezra), a leading integrated support and marine services provider in the offshore oil & gas (O&G) sector, is fast putting in place building blocks within its core businesses to drive its next lap of growth.

This latest strategic purchase of a well-equipped 650,000 square feet fabrication facility in Houston, US, is expected to anchor the Group as a global O&G engineering services provider. The acquisition is made through Ezra’s newly formed subsidiaries Ezram Properties LLC and Ezram Enterprise LLC.

The move complements Ezra’s proposed key US$250 million acquisition of Aker Marine Contractors, a successful and established SURF and floater installation company that also has a center of excellence in Houston through which operations in the Gulf of Mexico are supported, according to an Ezra report.

Mr Lionel Lee, Ezra’s Managing Director said: “The new Houston base will allow us to quick start our drive into the engineering and fabrication market in the Americas and Europe. Armed with our other facility in Vietnam, Ezra is now able to quickly respond to clients’ needs worldwide, further strengthening our competitive edge in the offshore O&G market. We expect the continued investments in our core offshore support, engineering and deepwater subsea services capabilities to accelerate our expansion into the Gulf of Mexico, North Sea, Latin America and African markets, and transform Ezra into a top-tier fully integrated global O&G support services provider."

The deal was concluded at ‘distressed prices’ and provides Ezra with the ability to fabricate customized cranes which meet the stringent requirements of the modern offshore O&G fleet, adding to the Group’s already wide product offering.

Ezra recently reported a Group net attributable profit of US$76.1 million on a revenue of US$353.6 million for the 12 months ended 31 August 2010. During the year, the Group added about US$330 million to its ‘war chest’ via a combination of bonds, notes, bank loans and new shares, to fund its plans for growth.