EMEA News
Wrist Group Reports Rise in Sales and Earnings
Denmark's Wrist Group, which includes independent marine fuel supplier OW Bunker, today announced "robust" results for 2012 with an increase in both sales and earnings for the year.
Earnings before tax increased by 16 percent to $76 million, compared to $66 million the previous year, while sales for the period increased by 19.6 percent to $14.6 billion, up from $12.2 billion in 2011.
"These are satisfactory results for the Group, and provide a strong platform for further growth and development," said Wrist Group CFO Morten Skou.
"As the shipping industry continues to face challenging economic conditions, our focus has been on working with our customers to provide them with as much operational and cost efficiencies as possible when procuring bunker fuel and ship supplies."
In 2012 OW Bunker made a number of expansion moves, including the launch of a U.S. physical bunker supply division, expanded coverage in Scandinavia through Bergen Bunkers, and the launch of a second office in China.
Last year Wrist Ship Supply grew its global market share to above 7 percent, the company said, and concluded the integration of the company's recent acquisitions, including offshore catering specialist Strachans Ltd and the OneSource Group of companies in the U.S. and Canada.
"We are satisfied with our performance in what remains challenging times for the shipping industry and our customers. Our conservative approach to controlled expansion has provided us with sustained growth over the past few years as well as financial stability," commented Jim Pedersen, Chief Executive Officer, Wrist Group.
"While we remain cautious on the future outlook for the industry, we are confident that our business model and the foundations that we have put in place will create the opportunity for further growth and development."
Last month industry sources said Wrist Group parent, Swedish private equity firm Altor Equity Partners (Altor), was looking to sell OW Bunker.
