In its financial results for the first half of the year, Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. (Boskalis) said it remains focused on market segments that show structural growth in the longer term while also providing short-term opportunities, including offshore wind.
The company explained that the greater focus on climate-related issues and ensuing opportunities in the field of offshore wind energy have created a sizable growth market with interesting projects.
Looking ahead, Boskalis stated that the market presents new opportunities, partly through the recently acquired offshore activities of VolkerWessels, which include VBMS, Stemat and Volker Stevin International (VSI).
Regarding its Offshore Energy business, which covers oil, gas and wind, the company said it managed to have a good first half of the year despite market conditions and the resulting lower revenue and fleet utilization.
Overall, in H1 2016, Boskalis realized a net profit of EUR 147.5 million, compared with EUR 306.5 million for the same period last year. Revenue in the first half of the year fell 25% compared to the first half of last year to EUR 1.17 billion, due to deteriorated market conditions.
The fleet rationalization program, announced in July , will be implemented in the next two years, with vessels being taken out of service. Of the 24 vessels that will be taken out of service in the 2016-2018 period, ten are at the Dredging division and fourteen at the Offshore Energy division.
The fleet rationalization will also have implications for the workforce, with a total of around 650 employees to be made redundant.