Oiltanking parent secures majority in Oman oil tank terminal

The Hamburg-headquartered company has expanded its investment at the Omani port by acquiring 21.99% of the indirect ownership in Oiltanking Odfjell Terminals & Co. LLC (OOT).

It follows news that Norwegian company Odfjell Terminals B.V. (OTBV) has entered into an agreement to sell its 29.75% indirect ownership in OOT for around $130m. The transaction, subject to customary regulatory approval, would result in a net gain of approximately $90m, the Oslo-based OTBV acknowledged.

OOT is a joint venture of Oiltanking Odfjell Terminals Oman BV (70%), Oman Oil Company (25%) and a private investment company (5%). Oiltanking GmbH, a subsidiary of Marquard & Bahls, already has an indirect ownership of 29.75% in the terminal and the acquisition will therefore increase Marquard & Bahls’ total indirect holding in OOT to 51.74%.

“We are convinced that this acquisition will strengthen our group’s leading position in providing exceptional storage services in a strategic location,” Marquard & Bahls coo Julio Tellechea said in a statement. “We look forward to further developing the terminal together with our joint venture partners.”

Odfjell Terminals ceo Frank Erkelens said the divestment from the Oman terminal, strategically located outside the Straits of Hormuz and for what the company’s has described as “a very attractive valuation”, would allow it to focus on its core markets.

Odfjell Terminals B.V. is a joint venture between Odfjell SE (51%) and Lindsay Goldberg (49%), which currently owns 10 terminals worldwide with a combined storage capacity of 4.8m cbm. Odfjell Terminals' key activities include storage and distillation of bulk liquid products.

“This divestment is in line with our strategy to focus on the terminals where we have managerial control of the assets and to further invest in growth opportunities in our core markets, such as Houston and Rotterdam," Erkelens said.

"We appreciate the cooperation we have had with our good partners in Oman, and wish them a successful future further developing the full potential of the terminal.”

OOT is the only liquid storage provider in Sohar Port and Free Zone, offering flexible terminal facility for storage and handling petroleum products, chemicals and gases since 2008. The terminal supports trade and cargo flows within the Middle East region as well as flows from the Arabian Gulf to other continents and regions. It operates six deep water berths.

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