CapMan press release - 14 December 2012 at 16:00 CET / 17:00 EET
CapMan Buyout invests in Acona
Funds managed by CapMan have agreed to acquire Acona Holding AS, one of Norway's
leading providers of well and drilling services.
Acona is one of the largest independent companies in Norway providing
consultancy services within the areas of Well Operations, Drilling, Risk, HSE,
Flow Analysis and Emergency Response. The company is headquartered in Stavanger,
Norway and has branch offices in Oslo, Bergen, Skien, and Tromsø in Norway,
Great Yarmouth and Aberdeen in the UK and Baku in Azerbadjan. The company
employs more than 370 people and turnover for 2012 is expected to be
approximately NOK 800 million.
"We are excited about the acquisition of Acona, which marks CapMan's first
investment in the oil services industry. The growth potential for providers of
Well Management Services is expected to be significant. An increasing share of
small and mid-sized E&P companies on the Norwegian and UK Continental Shelves,
and  constraints of human resources and competence for drilling operations are
factors expected to drive demand for  Acona's services going forward", says Hans
Tindlund, Partner at CapMan Buyout and responsible for the investment.
"CapMan is a perfect partner for Acona's management team. We have developed a
common view with regards to the future strategic development of the company. We
are now looking forward to work with CapMan and I am confident that together we
are well positioned to fulfill Acona's potential", says Oddbjørn Kopperstad, CEO
of Acona.
Acona's main shareholder, IKM Invest AS, welcomes CapMan as the new owner of the
company. "We have been involved with Acona more or less since the inception of
the company. Acona has now reached a size and position where it is natural that
a new owner takes over and continues to build and develop its success", says Ole
Rettedal, CEO of IKM Invest.
The acquisition is expected to close in January 2013. The investment in Acona is
the last from the CapMan Buyout IX fund. CapMan's next buyout investment will be
made from the CapMan Buyout X fund which was established in November 2012.
For additional information, please contact:
Hans Tindlund, Partner, CapMan Buyout, tel. +47 9266 9966
Oddbjørn Kopperstad, CEO, Acona , tel. +47 905 51 477
CapMan www.capman.com
CapMan is one of the leading private equity firms in the Nordic countries and
Russia, with assets under management of €3.0 billion. CapMan has four key
investment partnerships - CapMan Buyout, CapMan Russia, CapMan Public Market,
and CapMan Real Estate - each of which has its own dedicated investment team and
funds. Altogether, CapMan employs approx. 110 people in Helsinki, Stockholm,
Oslo, Moscow and Luxembourg. CapMan was established in 1989 and has been listed
on the Helsinki Stock Exchange since 2001.
Acona www.acona.com
Acona is one of the largest independent companies in Norway providing
consultancy services within the area of Well Operations, Drilling, Risk, HSE,
Flow Analysis and Emergency Response. Acona is the result of a series of mergers
of companies providing niche competence services to the oil and gas industry in
Norway since 1987, culminating with the acquisition of Fraser Offshore, a UK
based Well Management Company, in 2012.
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Source: CapMan Oyj via Thomson Reuters ONE
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