Ness, Risan & Partners (NRP) is carrying out a wide-ranging review of all its investments in the face of coronavirus chaos.
The Norwegian asset manager said the spread of Covid-19 is impacting businesses and economies worldwide, as stock markets suffer record falls.
NRP has implemented home working for all employees, with none known to have contracted the virus so far.
And the shipping, offshore and property investor said it is "currently assessing each and every investment".
Liquidity is the focus
Adequate liquidity is its primary priority, the firm added.
"Looking ahead, there’s a vast amount of uncertainty. We are closely monitoring the situation as a whole and specifically the economic measures put forward in the Nordic countries, as well as the market factors that typically have the biggest impact," NRP said.
The company is aiming to communicate continuously with all its stakeholders in order to maintain operations and revenue.
"We are currently taking active measures to ensure viable solutions in the short term and safeguard our assets in the long term," the company added.
NRP has been snapping up bulker tonnage in recent months, in cooperation with shipowners like Empros Lines and W Marine. It also has containerships and product tankers.
The company’s shipping funds had an interest in 24 vessels worth a combined $300m at the end of the first half of 2018.
Sister operation NRP Maritime Asset Management (MAM) told TradeWinds in November it was planning an expansion of its investment and ship financing funds.
Big names involved
MAM has said it wants to capitalise on a funding gap for fleet expansion in the industry.
The company now manages three funds after raising cash for the third fund in the fourth quarter of 2018.
In total, it has $75m in equity under management. The biggest investors are all well-known shipping names: Tudor, a company linked to the Wilhelmsen family; Klaveness Marine; and JO Capital, a Johan Odvar Odfjell family company.
Future plans included further building on the existing equity fund platform, as well as raising capital for a credit fund.
MAM was planning to look closely at somewhere between 15 and 30 direct investment opportunities every year.
