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Waha Capital consolidates its interests

ABU DHABI - Waha Capital, a leading Abu Dhabi diversified investment company, announced that it has sold its three Anchor Handling Tug (AHT) vessels held by its wholly-owned subsidiary, Waha Offshore Marine Services (WOMS), to Stanford Marine Group. The company has a 49 per cent shareholding in Stanford Marine Group.

WOMS was established by Waha Capital in 2009 as an owner and operator of offshore support vessels focused primarily on the UAE market. This transaction consolidates Waha Capital’s interests in the offshore support industry under one investment vehicle. The three vessels are currently owned by WOMS and placed under charter with Abu Dhabi owned entities. The charters are not affected by the sale.

Salem Rashid Al Noaimi, CEO and Managing Director of Waha Capital, said “The decision to combine our offshore supply assets reflects our new business strategy in which we aim to focus our investments in areas that will generate even higher returns to our shareholders. Transferring the WOMS vessels and their operating contracts to Stanford Marine Group will position the business for further growth.”

Elias Nassif, CEO of Stanford Marine Group, added “The outlook for the oil services market in the Middle East remains strong, with some very large offshore projects requiring a significant number of additional offshore service vessels. Accordingly, through this transaction we will increase SMG’s fleet size from 36 to 39 vessels. We value our continuing partnership with Waha Capital and see the transfer of these vessels as a further development of that relationship.”