OEG Offshore (OEG) today sealed its second acquisition in a week with the purchase of Hughes Subsea Services (Hughes), an integrated subsea service company.
The deal comes after OEG’s successful debut at RenewableUK’s Global Offshore Wind event where it was announced that Lowestoft‐based Fern Communications had also been acquired by the fast-expanding group.
This latest deal strengthens Aberdeen‐based OEG’s package of critical products and services for the global energy space through the addition of Hughes expertise and reputation in subsea services while providing access to growth capital and investment for Hughes to expand.
It is the third offshore-wind focused acquisition this year for OEG, which bought offshore welfare ‘gamechanger’ Pegasus Welfare Solutions (PWS) in April with its world-first in‐turbine tower toilet and differentiated range of offshore modular welfare units.
More acquisitions are planned as OEG drives a growth strategy to bring together complementary expertise in niche specialist services, specified for the marine environment across the global energy sector. And where each business line has the support of OEG for investment and internationalisation, through access to its facilities across more than 60 countries around the world.
Liverpool‐based Hughes, which employs 19 people, will retain its distinct name, and its founder, Ian Hughes, will continue to be its’ Managing Director and lead Hughes’ further growth and development with the support of the wider OEG group.
OEG head of renewables Dan Greeves said:
“Our strategy is to acquire small and medium-sized businesses and support their growth with the OEG experience, framework, processes, and security to be able to tender for ever larger projects. It also brings niche expertise together to deliver a range of services for our clients in one package.”
Hughes was the perfect fit for OEG’s vision to be part of projects across the “full scenario” of offshore work and capitalise on the global growth of offshore wind, in which it has been active since its first offshore wind project in 2006 working on Lynn & Inner Dowsing Offshore Wind Farm.
The US and Taiwan are key to OEG’s internationalisation strategy, and the group already has a presence in each market alongside ongoing projects and with expectations with growth in these regions.
Hughes has just opened its first international branch, with a recent new base in Bahrain where it is working on UXO clearance for an interconnector project.
Hughes delivers an integrated range of services to the offshore renewable energy, oil and gas telecommunications, power generation and marine civil engineering sectors, with a greater focus on UXO and boulder clearance, diving and cable route clearance as wind farms have moved further out at sea in deeper water.
Hughes founder Ian Hughes, said: “Being part of OEG means we will be able to expand to the rest of the world, not only just growing in renewables but also oil and gas and decommissioning projects.
The Asia Pacific region is a target for expansion, and OEG’s Aberdeen and Great Yarmouth bases offer Hughes a new presence in Scotland and on England’s active east coast.
It foresees increased demand for its Subsea services on offshore renewable and oil and Gas projects OEG has supplied the offshore market with DNV certified containers, baskets, skips, workshops and offshore tanks as well as standard and customised A60 engineering cabins for more than 45 years, on both a rental and sales basis.
Hughes Subsea Services will be retained as a distinct brand within OEG.
OEG has more than 60 bases spanning 6 continents and has supplied the offshore market with specialist offshore equipment and services for more than 45 years, on a fully managed, rental or sales basis.