CMS has advised Venterra Group Plc, the offshore wind services business, on its acquisition of Oceanscan Holdings Limited, a leading group of companies that provide subsea and non-destructive test equipment, geotechnical services and specialist personnel to the offshore energy market.
Venterra’s acquisition of Oceanscan has been underpinned by a fifth successful equity raise, including General Atlantic’s BeyondNetZero and First Reserve’s further equity investment of £30m, as well as through securing access to £110m of bank facilities from HSBC, NatWest, Rabobank and Citibank to facilitate future growth. CMS advised Venterra on both the equity investment and new bank facilities.
Venterra was formed in 2021 as a dedicated offshore wind services platform, supporting the industry’s rapid expansion and leading role in the clean energy transition. Comprised of highly technical service providers with expertise and experience across the planning, build and support phases of the offshore wind farm lifecycle, Venterra Group and its 700+ global workforce provides services to developers and installation contractors that reduce project risk, time and cost.
Oceanscan is highly complementary to Venterra’s service lines, particularly within its Geoscience and Survey teams, which are underpinned by the expertise of its companies: Ordtek, Partrac and Gavin & Doherty Geosolutions (GDG). The addition and integration of Oceanscan into the group places Venterra at the cutting edge of offshore subsea equipment and offshore sensing technology. Oceanscan’s capabilities, asset base, and technical knowledge will help to reinforce Venterra’s position as providing one of the most comprehensive survey offerings in the market.
The CMS team included Alasdair Steele, Craig Wilson, Frank Fowlie, Glyn Taylor, Ahmed Gmati, Annabella Nardi, Danielle Rumens, Kyle Allen and Mattie McGuire (Corporate); Fiona Henderson, Cameron Smyth-Milne, Euan Reid, Thomas Pullar, Charise Crawford, and Laura King (Banking); Cathy Wears (Share Incentives); Graeme Young and Isobel Thomas (Competition); and Anna Dunn (Employment).
