LPG shipper Epic Gas, a unit of Singapore’s BW, and gas carrier owner Lauritzen Kosan have entered into a transaction deal to combine their fleet and business activities to create BW Epic Kosan.
The combination creates a world leader in last mile delivery of LPG and other speciality gases and petrochemicals, the duo said in a joint statement.
Furthermore, Lauritzen Kosan will contribute 34 gas carriers to Epic Gas’s fleet of 43 pressurised gas vessels, in addition to certain other assets, in exchange for new shares in Epic Gas equivalent to a 27% stake.
BW Epic Kosan will have a combined fleet of 77 LPG/ethylene vessels with range in size from 3,500 cbm to 12,000 cbm.
Additonally, the new firm will entirely own 53 of the mentioned vessels, with a gross asset value of $900 million.
BW Epic Kosan will be headquartered in Singapore, with Copenhagen as a regional office alongside offices in London, Manila, and Tokyo.
Epic Gas’s current CEO Charles Maltby will take over as the chief executive of the combined entity while Lauritzen Kosan’s head Thomas Wøidemann will lead the commercial organisation.
Post-completion, BW Group will be the largest shareholder in BW Epic Kosan with 58%, followed by J. Lauritzen with 27%, Tailwind, and Epic’s existing minority shareholders.
The shares will continue to trade on Euronext Growth Oslo as EPIC.
The firms expect to complete the transaction during the first quarter next year.