The world’s largest tugboat operator Boluda Towage has signed an agreement to acquire British company SMS Towage.
The acquisition involves taking over the harbour and offshore towage services and marine operations, together with the management, office staff, crew, and fleet, based in the United Kingdom.
SMS has been operating in the UK since 1992, first as a ship management company and as a towage operator since 2002. Currently, the company is operating in the UK ports and regions of Tyne, Tees, Humber, Portsmouth, South Wales, and Belfast with a fleet of 20 tugs.
With this addition, Boluda Towage will increase its footprint in the UK as it is already operating in the ports of Invergordon (Cromarty Firth), London, Liverpool, and Southampton.
After the official closing of the transaction, SMS will be part of Boluda Towage’s organisation in the United Kingdom, and the new brand name will be Boluda Towage SMS. The local management team of Boluda Towage SMS will report to Philip Dulson, general manager of Boluda Towage in the UK.
“The strong local team, with highly engaged colleagues, will bring a lot of experience and expertise to our company. Having exciting times ahead of us we certainly intend to deploy SMS Towage’s professional crews and experienced employees on future projects,” said Vicente Boluda Ceballos, EVP of Boluda Towage.