Bit more on Bhagwan,The company focuses on shallow-water work,...

Bit more on Bhagwan,

The company focuses on shallow-water work, such as a five-year contract with Chevron to provide marine services at the Wheatstone Platform, unlike listed peer MMA Offshore which concentrates on larger offshore supply vessels.

Bhagwan Marine’s majority shareholders, Loui and Kerren Kannikoski, have hired Euroz Hartleys to oversee preparations for an initial public offering of about $100 million before June 30. If successful, Perth-headquartered Bhagwan would list with a market capitalization of as much as $250 million.

Bhagwan Marine has office and support facilities across Australia. A big part of Euroz Hartley’s pitch to listed equities investors is expected to centre on its maintenance capability and long-term contracts with the likes of Port of Melbourne. Even better for prospective investors, the surge in activity has come at the same time as a supply crunch in new vessels. Several competitors have also recently exited the business.

Financials are not yet available although gross profit margins for the capital-intensive industry run at 20 to 25 per cent.

James Byrne From Citi, the analyst that started coverage on MMA this week has also noted the Clarksons OSV rate index, which tracks offshore support vessels day-rates, continues to climb and is currently at 185, 40 per cent higher than the 20-year average of circa 130.

Once we know what they're making it could be a fit for MMA. Very interesting.