Boskalis, Kotug Wrap Up Merger of Their European Towage Businesses

KOTUG Dutch maritime companies Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. (Boskalis) and KOTUG International B.V. (KOTUG) have completed the merger of their European harbour towage operations announced in December 2015. At financial close, Boskalis refinanced its contribution to the joint venture and as a consequence has freed up and received EUR 90 million in cash, the company informed. The joint operations have been transferred to a 50/50 joint venture, bringing together the European harbour towage activities of both SMIT, a Boskalis subsidiary, and KOTUG. The companies said that in order to retain both strong brand names and to benefit from the well-established brand recognition, the joint venture will operate under the name KOTUG SMIT Towage. The operational integration will start with immediate effect. With a fleet of 65 tugboats, KOTUG SMIT Towage will be operating in 11 ports in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. The activities of both partners in other parts of the world are excluded from this cooperation.