BRISTOW HELICOPTERS, the last of the UK's big three helicopter operators to have maintained its independence, has signed a deal which would put half of the company in the hands of US giant Offshore Logistics (OLOG).
A letter of intent has been signed, under which OLOG, the second largest US helicopter operator, would acquire the 50% stake from a syndicate of investors led by Morgan Grenfell Development Capital.
OLOG, which is based in Lafayette, Louisiana, operates 188 aircraft through its Air Logistics subsidiaries engaged in oil- and gas-support activities in the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska and internationally, including Mexico, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia and Egypt.
Bristow follows its two main UK North Sea rivals in seeking an alliance to increase its scale in an increasingly international market. BIH was the first of the UK big three to seek a partner, when Robert Maxwell's business empire, of which it was part, collapsed in 1992. Canadian Helicopters stepped in as part of the rescue and eventually took a controlling stake. Bond Helicopters followed suit in 1994, joining forces with Norway's Helikopter Service group, which took a 49.4% holding.
Air Logistics and Bristow compete for international offshore-support work, but their fleets and businesses are complementary, says OLOG chief financial officer George Small. "There are few jobs our combined manpower and fleet could not compete for, anywhere in the world," he says.
OLOG hopes to complete the deal by the end of its financial year in June.
Source: Flight International
