MERCED CAPITAL ACQUISITION OF TELFORD OFFSHORE SEES ROBERT DUNCAN DESIGNATED CEO

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 20 (Bernama) -- The Telford Offshore group (Telford Offshore) announced that it has been acquired by entities affiliated with Merced Capital, in which the acquisition represents the end of the competitive sales process (the Sales Process) that had been previously disclosed.

According to a statement, Telford Offshore is now wholly owned by Merced Capital, a private investment firm based in the United States.

As part of the transaction, Merced Capital, advised by Sidley Austin, has provided an injection of new capital in Telford Offshore to support its next chapter of growth and improve its balance sheet, reducing its net debt position to zero post-transaction.

With the backing of a supportive financial sponsor and substantially enhanced liquidity, Telford Offshore will be well-positioned to benefit from the recovery underway in the global energy industry and the associated robust demand for offshore services.

Telford Offshore also announced that Robert Duncan has been appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and will assume responsibilities effective immediately, succeeding Fraser Moore.

A respected executive with over two decades of experience leading global teams in the offshore energy and marine industries, Duncan most recently served as Founder and CEO of Capital Strategies International and prior to that was CEO of Seafox International.

“I am honoured to join Telford Offshore at this pivotal time for the company and at an important moment in our industry, which is in the early phases of what we expect to be a strong recovery after several challenging years.

“Under its new ownership and with a streamlined balance sheet, Telford is poised to further establish ourselves as an industry leader,” said Duncan.

Meanwhile, Partner at Merced Capital, Joe McElroy said: “We have been Telford Offshore’s primary financial sponsor since its inception and look forward to continuing to support the team in this new chapter of its corporate history.”

Telford Offshore’s ongoing commitments to clients, vendors and employees will be unaffected and current operations will continue in normal course.

At present, Telford Offshore has five assets, which are all currently under contract to work with strong counterparties, including national oil companies and international oil companies.

-- BERNAMA