An Aberdeen-based oil and gas decommissioning firm has secured investment of more than £66 million from a private investment group.
MW&L Capital Partners, a London-based investor set up by two former Goldman Sachs directors and a Greek shipping tycoon, has led the investment round into Well-Safe Solutions which has brought together a consortium of private backers to buy a stake in the firm. Co-founder Mark Patterson will step down from the company as part of the deal.
Launched in 2017, Well-Safe now employs 70 staff and around 20 contractors. It specialises in well decommissioning, a sector which will see some £7.5 billion spent in the North Sea over the next decade as around 5,000 wells are retired.
Well-Safe chief executive Phil Milton said: “This significant investment marks the beginning of our next phase of planned growth. The initial private funding from our original shareholders has enabled us to build strong foundations.
“We have amassed the largest concentration of wells decommissioning expertise in the North Sea, secured major plug and abandonment (P&A) contracts, and are generating significant revenues from our engineering business.”
Julian Metherell, a founding partner of MW&L and former Goldman Sachs executive, said: “Decommissioning is one of the greatest industrial challenges we face and a sector with massive global potential. Well-Safe, with its wealth of well decommissioning experience, dedicated marine P&A assets and associated equipment, is the first-of-its-kind tier one company with a complete P&A capability, and is ideally placed to capitalise on this opportunity.”
Well-Safe Solutions was established by industry veterans Alasdair Locke, Mark Patterson, and Paul Warwick. Funding from Scottish Enterprise, including investment from the Scottish Investment Bank and a regional selective assistance grant, bolstered the initial private funding provided by the major shareholders.
Locke and Warwick remain as chairman and non-executive director respectively. Metherell joins the board, which also comprises Well-Safe’s senior management and Scottish Enterprise.
