Samir J Fancy, Chairman, Renaissance has huge plans for the growth of the Company
Riding the Wave
Renaissance Services SAOG subsidiary Topaz Energy and Marine Ltd. (Topaz) has made an entry into the buoyant hydrocarbon market in Qatar.With the acquisition of the Doha Marine Services (DMS) fleet of 14 owned and managed vessels, Topaz has added four of its own vessels to corner an impressive 18 percent of the offshore marine services sector in Qatar. The entire transaction is valued at QR453 million and is to be concluded in phases in compliance with the regulatory processes prevalent here. The success of Renaissance Services is writ with numerous such examples of foresight. The courage of conviction with which such business deals are successfully concluded shows on the foresight of the leaders. An ability to take on challenges has been the major factor in the company drawing up an impressive list of accomplishments. Renaissance has a fleet that is counted amongst the top 10 in the world. To find out more about Topaz and its Qatar operation, Qatar Today spoke to Samir J Fancy, Chairman, Renaissance.
|q| What is Topaz Energy and Marine Ltd's presence in other GCC states? |a|Renaissance Services SAOG subsidiary, Topaz Energy and Marine Ltd, has been active in the Gulf since 1973 with the establishment in Dubai, of Nico International - the Gulf's premier ship repair company. Since inception, the Oil and Gas fabrication business has been developed by Adyard Abu Dhabi LLC and the Offshore Supply Vessel fleet has been growing from its base in Jebel Ali under the auspices of Nico Middle East Limited (NMEL) The company's offshore vessel business though headquartered in the UAE operates on a global basis. With the UAE based fleet focussing on the Middle East and North African markets, NMEL also owns and operates vessels in the Far East and Europe. Two of the offshore vessel companies are based in Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan and jointly dominate the Caspian markets. Adyard fabricates oil and gas infrastructure equipment and has been active in providing processing equipment to the global markets including the rapidly expanding Qatar market. Nico International operates a marine workshop in Salalah and supports the marine repair markets in Wudham and Muscat while providing skilled technicians via riding squads to the regions vessel operators.
|q| Who are your international partners in maintaining and plying your fleet? |a|Oceanteam of Aberdeen have the cable laying vessel, the TEAM Oman on charter for two years with the vessel currently in Italy to load cable for a job in the UK.Mermaid of Thailand have the MSV TEAM Siam on charter, she has recently finished a job in Thailand for Chevron and is now en route to China via Hong Kong for her next job. In Qatar, Topaz is already working with Occidental, Total and Ras Gas. In the Caspian, Topaz operates through its BUE subsidiaries and their 60 plus vessels work with BP, SOCAR, AGIP, Shell and Saipem.
Spreading Wings According to a statement released by the company after the recent acquisition, the total size of the Topaz marine fleet has incresed to 91 vessels which includes 16 vessels under construction as part of its fleet acquisition and renewal strategy. DMS is recognized as an excellent marine services company and will be the sixth operating company in the Topaz offshore vessel fleet, joining NICO Middle East, NICO Far East, BUE Caspian, BUE Kazakh and BUE Turkmen; with a seventh marine enterprise already under formation in Saudi Arabia. Omani and Foreign banks have supported the transaction, with the principal financing consortium led by Calyon Corporate and Investment Bank. The deal also has a positive impact on commercial relations between Oman and Qatar.The Minister of Commerce and Industry, Oman, HE Maqbool bin Ali Sultan said, We are committed to developing and promoting relations within the brotherly states in the AGCC; and the relationship between Oman and Qatar is an excellent example of this. The Minister expressed his satisfaction at the ongoing cooperation between the two countries in political, economic, social and educational fields, and said, The transaction between Renaissance and DMS is an important event in the private sector commercial relations of Qatar and Oman. Investment, co-operation and economic activity of this kind, serves the interests of both countries and the people. Renaissance Chairman Samir J. Fancy explained, The DMS acquisition is a major event in our stated strategic intent to increase the size and geographical spread of our offshore support vessel fleet. The cornerstone of Qatar's booming economy is its hydrocarbon resources. The worldÕs largest known non-associated offshore gas field is in Qatari territory; placing the country third in terms of world natural gas reserves. As both Qatar and Oman continue to liberalise business laws this is energising private sector investment and increased economic activity between our two nations. Qatar offers great opportunity to a quality service provider like Renaissance and we shall certainly consider further investment in Qatar in both our onshore and offshore services. Renaissance CEO Stephen Thomas added, DMS is a debt-free company with a 2007 EBITDA exceeding QR 60.5 million (RO6.54 million), which provides us the base platform for growth, Together, the synergies and growth opportunities for DMS and Topaz are immense. Topaz brings scalability, flexibility, ambition and a proven growth record and DMS provides a superior route to market in Qatar and the Northern Gulf. When Renaissance companies come face to face with opportunity, great things happen. Renaissance Services SAOG is one of Oman's most successful international services companies listed on the Muscat Securities Market, with a primary focus on oil & gas services.
|q| The acquisition of DMS is obviously a part of larger expansion plans. Which are the other countries or regions that your company is eyeing at present? |a| The Topaz strategy is to: a. Continue to maintain and grow its dominant market share in the Caspian region; b. Grow its UAE based fleet and increase market share for deployment in key hydrocarbon regions ; specifically in Saudi Arabia; c. Form joint ventures and strategic alliances with key local partners in multiple jurisdictions; d. Reduce the average age of its fleet through a programme of new builds and/or acquisitions of younger fleets; e. Expand its geographic presence in the GCC and South East Asia though acquisitions. |q| Are there plans to list your company? |a| All the business segments of the company have huge growth potential. And Topaz management have drawn out plans to invest over $500 million over the next three years. Most of the equity requirements for this capex can be funded by Renaissance SAOG. However with a view to maximize Renaissance's shareholder value a number of options are being currently looked at. The management is working closely with Simmons International, a leading Corporate Finance Advisor and various options/plans are being currently examined. Once these are evaluated properly we will be able to state the way forward. |q|Qatar already has major players in the industry, primarily Nakilat. How do you plan to up your game in this market? |a|NMEL is an ISO 9001 company that is focused on implementing 14001 and 18001 in 2008. Totally focussed on Behaviour Based Safety Management and Competence Assurance it is our intention to use the lessons learned over the last twenty years in Dubai to improve the service levels to our customers. By introducing new technologies we are also improving the quality of life for our seafarers and therefore minimising turnover in what has become a very demanding market. Our strategy for the Qatar market, as for all our markets, is leadership through excellence and investment in the critical areas of health, safety, environment and quality.
|q|What are your plans on increasing the Qatar fleet, and other expansion plans? |a|The Qatar Fleet will grow by five vessels this year as DMS will be charged with managing the NMEL vessels in Doha. Future growth will depend upon opportunities and DMS/NMEL will grow together as a unified GCC focused company. Other fleet acquisitions should allow us to expand our South East Asian presence. On the Oil and Gas fabrication front, we are evaluating opportunities for expansion through establishing a local presence in order to be closer to our markets. |q| What kind of changes can be expected at DMS, at the management level? |a| The intention is for DMS and NMEL to function as one company, given that we will have 17 of our 21 Middle East vessels based in Qatar it makes sense for the front line managers of the combined companies to be based close to the fleet. The critical support functions will continue to be based in Dubai which is closer to the Topaz Head Office, our principal suppliers and the financial institutions therefore functions such as Finance, Procurement and HSEQ will be based in Dubai. There will be a support element for all functions in both locations but the management of the function will be in the area where it is most practicable
This article is reproduced with special permission from Qatar Today - Qatar's only news, business and lifestyle magazine
_thumb.jpeg)
