Maersk to spin off drilling business, $5bn expected
Staff Writer |
A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S has decided to pursue a separate listing of Maersk Drilling Holding A/S (Maersk Drilling) on Nasdaq Copenhagen A/S in 2019.
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Having evaluated the different options for Maersk Drilling, A.P. Moller - Maersk has concluded that listing Maersk Drilling as a standalone company presents the most optimal and long-term prospects for its shareholders, offering them the possibility to participate in the value creation opportunity of a globally leading pure play offshore drilling company with long-term development prospects.
The process has been initiated to ensure that Maersk Drilling is operationally and organisationally ready for a listing in 2019. As part of the preparation, debt financing of $1.5bn from a consortium of international banks has been secured for Maersk Drilling to ensure a strong capital structure after a listing. Further details for a listing will be announced at a later stage.
The decision on the future of Maersk Drilling marks a milestone in the business transformation of A.P. Moller - Maersk towards becoming an integrated transport & logistics company as announced on 22 September 2016.
The target was set to find new viable solutions for the oil and oil related businesses within 24 months. During the past two years solutions for Maersk Oil and Maersk Tankers have been found and today the plan to list Maersk Drilling is announced.
For Maersk Supply Service, the pursuit of a solution will continue. However due to challenging markets, the timing for defining a solution is difficult to predict.
Net cash proceeds to A.P. Moller-Maersk from separation of Maersk Oil, Maersk Tankers and now expected Maersk Drilling is around $5bn. Maersk Drilling’s separate financing is expected to release cash proceeds of around $1.2bn to A.P. Moller - Maersk.
In addition, A.P. Moller-Maersk sold Total S.A. shares for an aggregated amount of around $1.2bn during July 2018. This represents the increase in value since signing of the sale of Maersk Oil in August 2017. A.P. Moller - Maersk retains 78.3 million shares in Total S.A. with a current aggregated value of around $5bn. ■