Scotland’s Fletcher Shipping has been brought back from the brink by a private investment fund, after it was forced into administration by low spot prices for offshore shipping.
Administrators have transferred the Aberdeen-based company’s four vessels to a new company, FS Shipping, with £18m in financing from private investment firm Grovepoint Capital.
The vessels are FS Pegasus (built 1996), FS Cygnus (built 2014), FS Pisces (built 1992) and FS Taurus (built 1991).
Administrators told press that the ships’ employment and operation were not affected by the transfer. The restructuring will, however, cause shareholders and creditors to lose out.
In 2012 and 2013, Fletcher received a total of £5m in investment from public funds, including from the Scottish Loan Fund, part of the Scottish Investment Bank.
Keith Fletcher, founder of Fletcher Shipping, told press: “It is testament to the strong reputation of the crews and personnel at Fletcher Shipping that we have secured the confidence of new investors who have helped us recapitalise our business.
“We have worked hard to keep our fleet working throughout the recent downturn in the North Sea – a downturn which has affected the vessel market more harshly than I have witnessed in 30 years of business.”
