Netherlands-based Mammoet Holding B.V. confirmed it is negotiating with UK-headquartered ALE in a bid to acquire it. Mammoet said talks were at an advanced stage. Should agreement be reached, approval will be sought from the relevant authorities, Mammoet continued.
Mammoet is owned by SHV, a privately held Dutch investment company. SHV was founded in 1896 following the merger of coal trading companies. It now consists of seven companies. Net sales for SHV in 2018 was Euro 20.1 billion (US$22.5 billion), up 1 per cent from the €19.9 billion ($22.3 billion) of 2017. Mammoet accounts for more than €1 billion of that total and employs 4,600 people worldwide.
Mammoet has been at the top of the International Cranes and Specialized Transport magazine IC50 ranking of the world’s largest crane-owning companies since the launch of the league table which is now in its 24th year. In recent years ALE rose rapidly to third place in the table. Combining the equipment fleets of both companies will make the new entity’s lifting capability close to double that of its nearest competitor, Sarens, in second place.
ALE was formed in 1983 in the UK. Its first major expansion abroad was Abu Dhabi to work in oil and gas throughout the United Arab Emirates. Mark Harries was appointed the managing director in 1995. The 4,300 tonne capacity, 190,000 tonne-metre-rated AL.SK190 super heavy lifter was launched in 2008 with the second unit appearing in 2011, the same year in which the Mega Jack system was launched. Expansion in 2012 saw offices open in Brazil and Iraq. Joint-venture agreements were announced in Australia, Canada, and the Philippines.
A milestone was reached by ALE in 2013 with the lift of a 43,475 tonne topside in Korea. In 2016 the new 5,000-tonne capacity AL.SK350 went to work on its first project where it made a record 3,000-tonne lift, claimed as the heaviest ever made by a land-based crane. ALE UK Holdings posted a turnover of UK£193 million ($ 216 million) in the 12 months to the end of March and employed just over 1,350 people.
So far there is no further information on the details of the negotiation, we will come back with an update again when there is more news about the acquisition. This mark the second acquisition we see in 2019 with Terex selling Demag Cranes to Tadano earlier announced in the first quarter.
