Smit Internationale N.V. has reached an agreement to acquire Fairplay Towage’s 50 percent interest in leading Belgian towage provider URS.

The acquisition will make Smit the 100% shareholder of URS.

The total consideration for this transaction amounts to EUR 182.5 million. The transaction will be paid partly in shares and partly in cash.

The calculation is based on Smit’s share price at closing of Euronext Amsterdam of December 28, 2007 of EUR 68.34.

Smit will increase its outstanding shares by issuing new shares to an amount of 9.99% of its outstanding shares, as of December 31, 2007, which represents an amount of EUR 108 million.

The cash consideration amounts to EUR 74.5 million. Closing of the transaction is expected in the first quarter of 2008 and is subject to regulatory competition authority filings and works council advice.

SMIT CEO Ben Vree of Smit says that URS in Antwerp is of strategic interest in Smit’s network of harbor towage activities and that Antwerp harbor activity is expected to grow continuously. With the acquisition Smit will be able to realize a number of synergies between its Rotterdam and Antwerp activities.

source: MarineLog