Statsbygg, which manages most of the Norwegian government’s property portfolio, has selected HENT as the general contractor for the construction of the Norwegian Ocean Technology Centre Wing B. The project is a partnering project and one of Norway’s most unique construction projects.

HENT and Statsbygg are now entering the partnering phase of the project in preparation for the start of construction towards the end of the first quarter of 2024. The new Norwegian Ocean Technology Centre, which is expected to be completed in 2027, will play an important role in the green transition. It will help to secure Norway’s position as a leading port nation through the development and transformation of the local, national and international maritime industry. The centre will include a 300-metre-long ocean basin building measuring approximately 25,000 square metres, and that is what HENT is now building.

“It is gratifying that HENT has been awarded yet another important contract for the construction of critical infrastructure and another landmark in Norway. We will also do our utmost to uphold the confidence once again shown in HENT by Statsbygg. This is a complex project that requires considerable experience and an extraordinary partnering ability. It will be great to get started,” says Christian Johansson Gebauer, Chairman of the Board of HENT and President, Business Area Construction & Services, Ratos.

The centre will house office premises, meeting rooms and an underground parking garage as well as wet and dry laboratories, which in turn will house two ocean basin facilities. Working together with the equipment suppliers for the basin laboratories will be an important component of the partnering phase.

“We are very proud to have been awarded this contract. The facility will be a world leader in its area and is an important acknowledgment for HENT. It feels particularly gratifying to be able to contribute to Trondheim’s development since HENT has its roots and head office there. The Norwegian Ocean Technology Centre will be an important building for Norway, and we look forward to beginning the partnering phase and creating a solid foundation for implementing the project,” says Jan Jahren, CEO of HENT.

The projects carried out by the companies in Ratos’s Construction & Services business area mainly comprise infrastructure maintenance and commercial buildings, with very limited exposure to housing construction (<5% of net sales).

For more information, please contact:
Josefine Uppling, VP Communication, Ratos, +46 76 114 54 21
Endre Persen, VP Communication, HENT, +47 916 89 929

About Ratos
Ratos is a business group consisting of 16 companies divided into three business areas: Construction & Services, Consumer and Industry. The companies have approximately SEK 32 billion in net sales (LTM). Our business concept is to own and develop companies that are or can become market leaders. We have a distinct corporate culture and strategy – everything we do is based on our core values: Simplicity, Speed in execution and It’s All About People. We enable independent companies to excel by being part of something larger. People, leadership, culture and values are key focus areas.

Vestia Construction Group (Vestia) has signed a contract with the City of Mölndal for the new construction of Västerberg School and Bifrost Preschool in Mölndal. Västerberg School will accommodate 570 pupils from the age of six to 12 (Year F–6) in 9,500-square-metre premises including a full-size sports hall and is scheduled to be completed in March 2025. Bifrost Preschool will be the largest preschool in northern Europe with 14 classes housed in 4,200 square metres. Two classes will be specifically tailored for children with functional diversity and two will be open preschool classes offering activities for children who are not yet enrolled in preschool. The preschool will be completed in December 2024.

Västerberg School and Bifrost Preschool are part of the Lyftet programme, a strategic partnership between the City of Mölndal as the developer and Vestia as the general contractor. The programme includes eight projects: preschools, schools, and education centres. The ground was broken in December 2022 for the extensive refurbishment and extension of Building C at Almås School in Lindome, which is also part of the programme.

“Ratos’s construction companies are building a sustainable society by constructing sustainable commercial real estate and providing the state and municipalities with buildings that are important for society. We are very proud that we have been entrusted to build these schools in Mölndal. It is important to help provide a good environment for children and young people,” says Christian Johansson Gebauer, Chairman of the board of SSEA Group, which includes Vestia, and President, Business Area Construction & Services, Ratos.

In total, Västerberg School, Bifrost Preschool and Almås Building C entail a contract cost/order intake of SEK 669m for Vestia.

“The strategic partnership between the City of Mölndal and Vestia means that we are now initiating three additional school projects. It is incredibly gratifying to see how our strong partnership in 2022 has now resulted in the start of production for future school premises in the municipality,” says Christian Wieland, CEO of SSEA Group, which includes Vestia.

As part of the Lyftet programme, the refurbishment of Building H and Building L at Fässberg School has been completed, and at Stretered School one building is being refurbished and planning of another is in progress. Future projects will be carried out at Hålsten Preschool, Östergård School and Rävekärr School.

About the school projects

–          Developer: City of Mölndal

–          General contractor: Vestia Construction Group

–          Architect: Liljewall

–          Size: Västerberg School, gross area 9,500 square metres; Bifrost Preschool, gross area 4,200 square metres; Almås Building C, gross area 4,100 square metres

–          Contract cost: SEK 669m

About SSEA Group

SSEA Group is a Swedish construction group with operations throughout the country. The Group contributes to building sustainable communities. The focus for the operations is projects with implementation in collaboration/partnering where the customer’s most important priorities are high on the agenda. The group has the two subsidiaries: Vestia and SSEA AB.

För mer information, vänligen kontakta:
Josefine Uppling, VP, Communication, Ratos, +46 76 114 54 21, josefine.uppling@ratos.com
 

About Ratos

Ratos is a business group consisting of 16 companies divided into three business areas: Construction & Services, Consumer and Industry. The companies have approximately SEK 30 billion in net sales (LTM). Our business concept is to own and develop companies that are or can become market leaders. We have a distinct corporate culture and strategy – everything we do is based on our core values: Simplicity, Speed in execution and It’s All About People. We enable independent companies to excel by being part of something larger. People, leadership, culture and values are key focus areas.

Aibel has been awarded a contract by Aker BP for constructing the Munin platform (formerly Krafla) in the Yggdrasil area. The contract has a value of around NOK 7 billion.

The contract is an EPChc contract where Aibel is responsible for engineering, procurement and construction connected with delivering an unmanned process platform, also known as an UPP.

The project will be based on Aibel’s FEED (Front-End Engineering and Design) for Krafla UPP, now Munin, which was awarded in 2021. Key priorities for the project have been safety in design, minimal maintenance requirements and simplification of systems and functions on the platform using high-reliability equipment, automation, and digitalisation, applying a so-called “design to operate” philosophy.

Munin will be the first process platform on the Norwegian continental shelf designed from start for ordinary operation without a crew.

“We will soon close a fantastic year for Aibel. In times of geopolitical unrest and following energy crisis, Aibel contributes to secure energy supply in our part of the world. That, together with the fact that the order book continues to contain many contracts within renewables, means that we are very proud owners today,” says Christian Johansson Gebauer, member of the board of Aibel and President, Business Area Construction & Services, Ratos.

Project management, procurement and engineering services will mainly be carried out at Aibel’s Oslo office, with peak staffing of around 300 people. Construction will take place at Aibel’s yards in Haugesund, Norway and Thailand.

“We are proud and honored to enter into a partnership with Aker BP. With this contract award, we are once again consolidating our position as a leading supplier within critical infrastructure. We really look forward to delivering on the UPP concept, which we have developed together with Equinor, and being among the pioneers of future platform solutions,” says Aibel’s President and CEO, Mads Andersen.

The development of the Yggdrasil area is subject to approval by the Norwegian Parliament (the Storting).

For further questions, please contact:
Josefine Uppling, VP Communication, Ratos, +46 76 114 54 21

About Ratos
Ratos is a business group consisting of 16 companies divided into three business areas: Construction & Services, Consumer and Industry. In total 2021, the companies have approximately SEK 28 billion in net sales. Our business concept is to own and develop companies that are or can become market leaders. We have a distinct corporate culture and strategy – everything we do is based on our core values: Simplicity, Speed in execution and It’s All About People. We enable independent companies to excel by being part of something larger. People, leadership, culture and values are key focus areas.

The Norwegian company OBOS, a leading property developer in Norway that is also growing rapidly in the Swedish market, is to acquire 6.5 percent of the capital and 23.1 percent of the votes in NCC from Nordstjernan. OBOS possesses broad and in-depth industry know-how of the entire value chain, both as a residential developer and as the principal owner of the listed construction companies Veidekke and AF-Gruppen.

“We are very pleased about the opportunity to acquire this shareholding in NCC, which is one of the leading construction companies in the Nordic region, and we are looking forward to assuming an active role in developing the company together with Nordstjernan, the company’s Board of Directors and management,” says Daniel Kjørberg Siraj, CEO of OBOS.

“We look forward to having OBOS as a partner that is an expert in the sector. As an active owner, Nordstjernan has positive experiences of working in various forms of partnership. This year alone, we have, for example, invested in the diagnostics company Aidian and entered a partnership with the Norwegian holding company Ferd. The transaction with OBOS is similar to this model. NCC’s Board of Directors and management do a great job, and we believe in the company. As a continued active owner of NCC, we see that considerable long-term value creation remains,” says Peter Hofvenstam, CEO of Nordstjernan.

The transaction consists of 5 million Class A shares and 2 million Class B shares, with a purchase consideration amounting to SEK 772.5 million, corresponding to a volume-weighted price per share of about SEK 110. Following the transaction, Nordstjernan’s ownership amounts to about 5.0 million Class A shares and 4.7 million Class B shares, corresponding to 8.9 percent of capital and 24.3 percent of votes.

“For the last number of years, Nordstjernan has been undergoing a strategic transformation. This year alone, we have invested SEK 3 billion in new companies such as engcon, Norva24 and Aidian. From investing almost exclusively in a single sector – construction – we now have active investments in five sectors,” concludes Peter Hofvenstam.

Peter Hofvenstam

President and CEO

Nordstjernan AB

Questions will be answered by:

Stefan Stern, Head of Communications, Nordstjernan

Telephone: +46 70 636 74 17

E-mail: stefan.stern@nordstjernan.se

Nordstjernan is a family-controlled investment company whose business concept is to be an active owner that creates long-term value growth. More information about Nordstjernan can be found on www.nordstjernan.se.

At the start of Nordstjernan’s modern history in 1999, the only company in which it owned a stake was NCC. Since then, the portfolio has been diversified through returns, value creation and investments based on the sole company owned at that time.

Since 2020, Nordstjernan has developed a new sector-based strategy with long-term active investments in high-quality companies in sectors with sustainable competitive advantages and strong structural market trends. Less than one-fifth of Nordstjernan’s net asset value is currently comprised of holdings in the Construction & Real estate sector. Instead, the Health sector accounts for about one-third of the portfolio and the Industry & Trade sector accounts for more than two-fifths. The majority of the net asset value is currently derived from privately owned companies. The business consists of both listed and unlisted portfolio companies as well as corporate credits. More mature companies have also been supplemented with investments in smaller growth companies.

BGF has invested £5 million in Clarke Group, a building façade specialist based in Ballymena, Northern Ireland, to support its growth across the UK and Ireland.

Founded in 1996 by Michael Clarke, the family-owned business specialises in innovative design-led façade projects, providing an end-to-end service to blue-chip construction industry clients such as Berkeley, Morgan Sindall, and Balfour Beatty.

With a strong market reputation for producing high quality, sustainable products and cutting-edge designs for high-rise commercial and residential buildings, Clarke has recently experienced growth averaging 25% each year since 2018 and delivered revenue in 2022 of close to £30 million.

In June 2022, the business also opened a new high-spec head office and state of the art offsite manufacturing facility in Ballymena to support team expansion as it aims to become an industry leader in the coming years.

The investment from BGF will support a strong order book as Clarke continues to scale across the UK and Ireland.

BGF’s Talent Network has also introduced Adrian Ringrose, an experienced leader within the construction industry, to the business as Non-Executive Chair.

With increased regulation regarding the fire safety of high-rise buildings post-Grenfell, the demand for safe and sustainable façades and cladding has increased. Our market leading designs and sector-experienced team mean we’re fast becoming the partner of choice for top tier construction firms across the UK.

Eugene Clarke, managing director of Clarke

“It was important for us to find an investment partner that could provide not only capital, but also expertise at Board level to support the company as it scales. The access to BGF’s network has been invaluable and we’re also delighted to welcome Adrian to the team.”

BGF has now invested c.£65 million into Northern Irish businesses, making it one of the most significant investors in the region.

Chris Nixon, investor at BGF, added: “The UK façade market dynamics are extremely strong and double-digit sector growth will be underpinned in the long term by fire safety and ESG-related demand. When you combine this with Clarke’s track record of quality and excellence, its impressive customer base, and a focussed and experienced management team, we believe the business is perfectly primed to take further market share in the coming years. We’re delighted to be supporting the business at such a pivotal point in their growth journey.”

Adelis Equity Partners Fund II (“Adelis”) has divested its majority stake in Mobilhouse, a provider of temporary modular buildings for offices, schools, kindergartens and offices, to a consortium led by investment firm Kirk Kapital.

Following the acquisition by Adelis in 2019, Mobilhouse executed a successful roll-out of its modular space offering fuelled by, amongst other, ESG initiatives targeted towards public customers. In addition, the company has successfully shifted towards a 100% rental model.

In connection with the transaction, Steffen Thomsen, Senior Adviser at Adelis, will become the Chairman of the Board at Mobilhouse.

“Thanks to the strategic shift during recent years, Mobilhouse now has a solid and scalable business, with a strong management team. On behalf of Adelis, I would like to thank management and employees for their strong efforts these past years. At the same time, I am looking forward to continuing my involvement with management and the company, with a focus on further accelerating the growth of the business in the coming years” says Steffen Thomsen.

Benny Møller, CEO of Mobilhouse says: “The activity level at Mobilhouse has never been higher and I am grateful for the support we have received from Adelis and the board of directors over these past years. I am looking forward to working with the new ownership group to continue the development of our business”.

The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price.

Adelis was advised by Carnegie and Kromann Reumert on the transaction.

For further information:

Steffen Thomsen, Adelis Equity Partners, steffen.thomsen@adelisequity.com

Caroline Lundgaard, Adelis Equity Partners, caroline.lundgaard@adelisequity.com

About Mobilhouse

Mobilhouse is a leading Danish provider of temporary modular buildings for offices, schools, kindergartens, offices and building sites to private and public customers across Denmark. The business was founded in 1961 and has a build strong ESG focus and offering during recent years – Mobilhouse was for example one of the first provider of Swan ecolabelled buildings in the Nordics.  Mobilhouse is headquartered in Fredericia. For more information, please visitwww.mobilhouse.dk.

About Adelis Equity Partners

Adelis is a growth partner for well-positioned, Nordic companies. Adelis partners with management and/or owners to build businesses in growth segments and with strong market positions. Since raising its first fund in 2013, Adelis has been one of the most active investors in the Nordic middle-market, making 36 platform investments and more than 160 add-on acquisitions. Adelis today manages approximately €2.5 billion in capital. For more information, please visit www.adelisequity.com.