Salvage Firm Ardent Reports Solid First Year After Titan-Svitzer Merger

In June 2015, Ardent was hired to remove oil from the sunken Oleg Naydenov near the Canary Islands. Photo: Salvamento Maritimo

One year after the salvage firms Titan and Svitzer joined forces under the new brand Ardent, the combined company can report that, all things considered, the first year in business went pretty well.

“One year ago, we set off with our business plans, and today we are pleased that the merger has progressed in line with these plans” said Ardent CEO Peter Pietka, “although the market has been weaker than expected”.

In May 2015, Svitzer Salvage, a part of the Maersk Group, merged with Titan Salvage, part of the Crowley Group, to form the new company Ardent, now equally owned by Svitzer and Crowley.

Bringing to the table, Svitzer Salvage had vast knowledge and experience in emergency preparedness and response, while Titan specialized in large projects, such as the completed salvage of the Costa Concordia, regarded as one of the most complex salvage jobs in history. Together, the combined company now offers a full range of services for worldwide salvage industry, from emergency management services and project related work, to underwater services and even offshore decommissioning.

Ardent says in its first year in business, the company won and executed more than 50 contracts all while achieving with zero loss-time incidents. Notable projects included fuel removal from the Oleg Naydenov, which caught fire and sank to a depth of about 2,700 meters near the Canary Islands in April 2015. In September, the company wrapped up the salvage of the MV Smart in South Africa, a project left over from the Titan Salvage days.

But not even the worldwide salvage industry is safe from the overall slow down in global shipping.

“The integration of the two companies has gone well, and the merger targets have been achieved,” said Pietka. “The current markets in the shipping and offshore sectors have affected our margins.”

Still, Ardent believes that it remains in a good position with a wide range of services and expertise.

“Looking from a different perspective, the current oil and gas market provides us with a large opportunity to focus on offshore decommissioning,” said Pietka.

“With the amount of knowledge and diversity between our partners and staff, and with a successful integration behind us, we look forward to the exciting years ahead,” he said.

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