Frode Teigen has opened the door for a sale of his stake in bulker owner Belships six years after he won an acrimonious battle for control of the company.
Teigen’s investment companies Kontrari and Kontrazi have hired advisors to evaluate strategic alternatives for the Oslo-listed company.
The two Teigen companies jointly own nearly 137m shares in Oslo-listed Belships, which represents a 53.9% stake in the shipowner.
At Tuesday’s closing price on the Oslo Stock Exchange, that is worth NOK 2.5bn ($210m).
Fearnleys Securities is leading the sale process, according to a statement to the Oslo Stock Exchange on Tuesday.
Belships has been touted as a possible takeover target, having been transformed under Teigen’s control.
In a statement to investors, Belships said it would not comment further on the process until a decision was reached. It said there was no guarantee of finalising a deal.
Belships, one of the oldest public shipping companies on the Oslo Stock Exchange, has been down this road before.
In early 2018. Sverre Tidemand, then the main shareholder in the shipowner, called in ABG Sundal Collier to review options for his stake in the company
Tidemand, whose family have been in control of Belships since it went public in 1937, eventually opted to merge the company with Teigen’s private bulker fleet.
He chose this path over a competing bid from his brother Otto and his daughters, Kristin and Caroline.
Since Teigen claimed control, Belships has grown significantly under the leadership of chief executive Lars Christian Skarsgard, a former Fearnleys man.
Today Belships has a fleet of more than 40 bulkers, up from 16 ships at the close of the merger with Teigen’s Lighthouse.
Belships chief executive Lars Christian Skarsgard told TradeWinds in a recent interview that the company has turned industry indecision over newbuildings into an opportunity.
The company did that acquiring new and modern bulkers, largely through leases with no down payments, and then selling off its older, less efficient ships
“Since then, little new fuel has been adopted in dry bulk, and newbuilding prices have consistently edged up and are 35% up now since 2019 levels,” Skarsgard said.
“For Belships, we thereby managed to renew our fleet at a relatively low cost compared to if we were to start that exercise today.”
After Teigen’s two companies, Jakob Hatteland Holding is the next largest shareholder with a 4.4% stake, followed by DNB Bank, which owns nearly 4%.
Tidemand’s Sonata AS owns just 0.4% today.
Eric Priante Martin contributed to this story.
