SBM Offshore

Source: Energy Digital

Date :19/02/2008 09:37:47

Blue chip oil services firm SBM Offshore has seen much change over the years. Exec looks at how this mainstay of the offshore world is continuing to drive itself forward

Written by Sam Wright and produced by Alex Smith

SBM Offshore (SBMO) has successfully overcome the challenges of the FPSO market through its knowledge and expertise, becoming a leader in its field. Appropriately, the rewards are high with strong margins, so in a booming market it is certainly no surprise that SBMO, the world’s largest supplier and operator of floating production facilities, has been doing so well.

With a turnover in excess of $2.8 billion and net profits of $267 million for 2007 (a rise of 28 percent on the year before) and over 4,000 employees across the globe, SBMO is firmly established.

History

With a pedigree like this, it is quite easy to forget just how much has changed for SBMO over the years. Founded in 1965 when a number of Dutch shipyards established a limited liability company under the name N.V. Industrieele HandelsCombinatie Holland (IHC Caland N.V.) and listed on the Amsterdam stock exchange, the company has evolved considerably from its initial position as a shipbuilding specialist. In the 1960s, the company began to explore Single Point Mooring (SPM) technology and quickly became a pioneer in the field.

Surviving the shipbuilding crisis of the late 70s and early 80s, the company began to shift its focus to FPSOs and was in fact the first contractor to invest in an FPSO under a lease and operate contract with oil major. This activity has since become the largest element of the group’s business profile.

In the early 90s the California based company Imodco, a main competitor in the supply of SPM systems for over two decades, was acquired. In 2000 this company moved to Houston and was renamed SBM-Imodco; today the company is known as SBM Atlantia.

Despite continued activity in its original business of specialist shipbuilding in July 2005 the company split these interests from its offshore concerns to create SBM Offshore (SBMO). The group now consists of four companies; Single Buoy Moorings, SBM Atlantia, GustoMSC and SBM Malaysia. SBM Offshore, the pioneer in offshore loading/offloading terminals and owner/operator of the world’s largest fleet of Floating Production Units intends to become a strong and reliable partner in bringing its offshore solutions to the LPG/LNG markets.

Community

SBM Offshore operates offshore facilities in a large number of countries worldwide under long-term contracts and it frequently undertakes construction activities in fabrication yards in developing countries. The company provides labour opportunities for locals in a “socially responsible way” supporting training schools in several non OECD countries and it is establishing a fabrication facility in port Amboin Angola, which will employ around 70 percent local nationals. Another example is the recently received contract from Petrobras to provide turnkey supplies, including a three year operation contract for the P57- FPSO, a deal worth around $1.25 billion; around 65 percent of the work will come from Brazil.

SBM is preparing for its first Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report for the year 2007 and this will be issued during May 2008 around two weeks after the annual report.

Change

It should come as no surprise that change is afoot again for the company. After 31 years with SBM, Didier Keller, Managing Director and CEO since 2000, has announced his retirement. A well-respected and hugely popular figure in the industry, Mr Keller will retire at the company’s AGM on May 15 2008.

Mr Keller will be replaced by Tony Mace, a British national who also joined SBMO in 1977. During his career at SBM Offshore Mr Mace has been Engineering Project Manager on some of the Company’s most prestigious projects, Chief Engineer in the Monaco office, and President of the combined group companies in Houston.

Despite Mr Keller and Mr Mace being of the same generation, this marks something of an end of an era. How the company reinvents itself remains to be seen, but it seems fair to say that the coming 40 years for SBMO will be as event filled and profitable as the past for SBM Offshore.

Click here to read the corporate case study on SBM Offshore