Business
Sale of cable ship
Sale of cable ship.
About this update from James Fisher And Sons Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n Fisher (James) & Sons PLC\n13 June 2006\n\n\n\n James Fisher and Sons plc\n ('James Fisher')\n\n Sale of cs Oceanic Princess\n\nJames Fisher, the leading marine services provider, announces that it has\ncompleted the sale of cs Oceanic Princess, its last remaining cable ship, to\nSouth East Asia Marine & Engineering and Construction Ltd for US$18.25 million.\nIn the James Fisher 2005 annual accounts, cable laying was treated as a\ndiscontinued business and the Oceanic Princess was shown as being held for sale\nwith a written down value of £8.0 million. The associated debt at the date of\nsale was £5.75 million. This sale ends James Fisher's involvement in the cable\nlaying market. The net proceeds of the sale, after costs and repayment of the\nassociated debt, will be used to grow further the core marine support service\nactivities which, in 2005, produced 57% of group operating profits.\n\n\nTim Harris, Chairman of James Fisher, commented:\n\n'We have said for some time that cable ships are not a core business because\ntheir operation is a capital intensive, commodity business which does not fit\nwith our marine service skills and strategy. I am pleased that we have been able\nto achieve a good price for the vessel while at the same time drawing a line\nunder our involvement in and exposure to the cable laying market.'\n\n\nContacts:\n\n\nTim Harris Chairman, James Fisher and Sons 020 7338 5808\n\n\nPaul McManus Parkgreen Communications Ltd 020 7786 9600\n\n 07980 541 893\n\n\n This information is provided by RNS\n The company news service from the London Stock Exchange \n ","length":1811,"tagName":"div"}]