Ashtead Technology and Forum Energy Technologies have agreed to form a joint venture to create subsea survey and ROV equipment rental and associated services.
Forum will contribute its subsea rentals business, currently trading as Forum Subsea Rentals.
The combined group, with a rental fleet of 19,000 assets valued in excess of USD 139 million will service all major subsea hubs from its bases in Aberdeen, Singapore, Abu Dhabi, London and Houston.
The business, which will trade as Ashtead Technology, is said it will provide an independent one-stop shop for equipment requirements. In addition to equipment rental supported by a team of 120 skilled personnel, Ashtead Technology will provide engineered measurement solutions and asset management services.
Allan Pirie , CEO of Ashtead Technology, who will lead the combined business, said: “By combining our strengths, Ashtead and Forum will be better able to offer a complete equipment and support package to our customers as they respond to the demands of today’s energy sector, where greater capital efficiency, depth of capability and domain expertise is essential to the delivery of successful projects.
“We will help our customers address their challenges head on, taking complex problems and matching them with equipment, technology solutions and industry expertise. This is not just about more of the same; it is about doing things differently in response to customer needs.”
Jim Harris , Forum’s chief financial officer and SVP – Drilling and Subsea, said: “We look forward to working with the Ashtead Technology team to create the leading global subsea rental equipment provider. In addition to strengthening our position in the rental marketplace, the joint venture will allow Forum to focus on our Subsea franchise’s core ROV related and other fabricated products. We are proud of our Subsea team’s resilience through the downturn and expect to outperform our competitors as the global offshore market recovers. I would like to thank all of our Forum Subsea Rentals employees for their hard work and dedication during the prolonged offshore market downturn.”
Houston based Forum Energy Technologies, owner of Forum Subsea Rentals, will retain a significant stake in the combined business.
The joint venture is anticipated to complete during the first quarter of 2018.