Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd. (APSEZ) said it had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 80% stake in Astro Offshore, in an all-cash deal for $185 million, implying an enterprise value of $235 million. The transaction is expected to be value accretive from the first year itself, the company said in a statement.

Astro is a global Offshore Support Vessels (OSV) operator in the Middle East, India, Far East Asia and Africa. It owns a fleet of 26 OSVs comprising of Anchor Handling Tugs (AHTs), flat top barges, Multipurpose Support Vessels (MPSVs) and workboats and provides vessel management and complementary services. 

“Astro’s acquisition is part of our roadmap to becoming one of the world’s largest marine operators. Astro will add 26 OSVs to our current fleet of 142 tugs and dredgers, taking the total count to 168,” said Ashwani Gupta, Whole-time Director & CEO, APSEZ.

“The acquisition will also give us access to an impressive roster of Tier-1 customers while further consolidating our footprint across the Arabian Gulf, the Indian subcontinent and Far East Asia. We look forward to working closely with Astro’s leadership team and scaling up the current platform,” he added.