Offshore helicopter service provider CHC Group this morning announced a conditional agreement to acquire Babcock International Group’s oil and gas aviation business. This Aberdeen, Scotland-headquartered Babcock division provides offshore oil and gas crew transport in the UK, Denmark, and Australia. It operates 30 aircraft and employs approximately 500.
Subject to pre-closing conditions, the deal is expected to complete in the second quarter. CHC said it will seek clearances for the transaction from antitrust authorities in the UK and Australia, though completion of the deal is not conditional upon such clearances being received.
The proposed transaction continues a consolidation trend in the offshore helicopter business, begun when Bristow Group merged with Era Helicopters last year. Headquartered in Irving, Texas, CHC has operations in the North, Caspian, and Timor Seas, and the Atlantic and Indian Oceans.
Today's announcement follows more than a year of industry speculation that aviation, energy, and defense conglomerate Babcock International was looking to unload this unprofitable unit, the former Bond Helicopters, currently doing business in the North Sea as Babcock Mission Critical Services Offshore. In February 2020, parent Babcock International announced that it was taking a $118.5 million charge related to its offshore aviation business and CEO Archie Bethel said the company was “restructuring our aviation sector to address the cost-base as the oil and gas revenues reduce.”