APM to demerge Maersk Drilling next year with separate listing
  • Aug 18, 2018

Maersk Innovator
Maersk Innovator: the separate financing of Maersk Drilling is expected to release cash proceeds of around USD1.2 billion to AP Moller-Maersk. Credit: Maersk


APM said it is expected to generate net proceeds of USD5 billion from the separation of Maersk Drilling and earlier deals involving Maersk Oil and Maersk Tankers, previously reported by Fairplay.

Ahead of the demerger, a group of international banks has advanced USD1.5 billion to Maersk Drilling in order “to ensure a strong capital structure after a listing,” Maersk said. This separate financing is expected to release cash proceeds of around USD1.2 billion to APM.

“Having evaluated the different options for Maersk Drilling, APM has concluded that listing Maersk Drilling as a standalone company presents the most optimal and long-term prospects for its shareholders, offering them the possibility to participate in the value creation opportunity of a globally leading pure play offshore drilling company with long-term development prospects,” APM said in a statement.

Shares in Maersk Drilling will be distributed to APM's shareholders.

The news came as Maersk said it posted a net profit of USD26 million in the second quarter of 2018 (2Q 2018) compared with a USD264 million net loss in 2Q 2017. But this year’s result included a profit of USD111 million from discontinued operations.

Continuing operations posted an USD85 million loss in 2Q 2018 against a USD10 million profit year on year.

Revenue, including the contribution from Hamburg Süd, grew 24% to USD9.5 billion in 2Q 2018, from USD7.7 billion. Excluding Hamburg Süd, revenue rose 5.7%.

APM also confirmed it generated USD1.2 billion from the sale of shares in French energy company Total in July that were part of Total’s purchase of Maersk Oil in August 2017. APM retains 78.3 million shares in Total, with a current aggregated value of around USD5 billion.

The group said it is still pursuing a solution over the future of Maersk Supply Service, but challenging markets made it difficult to predict the timing of a final decision.
APM set a target of 24 months to decide the future of its oil and oil related businesses after announcing it would focus on becoming an integrated transport and logistics company on 22 September 2016.