OTTO MARINE: Wins First newbuild orders in 2 years

Otto Marine's shipbuilding division, which specializes in building complex offshore support vessels, recently clinched a contract for 2 AHTS vessels. Company photo
OTTO MARINE has secured orders for building two offshore vessels for a total value of US$27.8 million - its first newbuilding order in two years.

Awarded by a renowned Indonesian marine and offshore vessel operator, the contracts are for two identical units of 5,150 bhp Anchor Handling Tug Supply Vessels (AHTS).

Each AHTS will be about 62 meters in length, constructed to meet ABS class requirements and to be delivered in 2H2014.

CFO Michael See. Company photoOtto has been challenged by losses in the past two financial years and the latest order is expected to contribute positively to its earnings this year.

"We restructured and consolidated our yard operations to be more efficient with a lower cost structure.  We are now in a much better position to grow our shipbuilding segment," said CFO Michael See.

Its FY2012 revenue was US$374.3 million, down 9.8% year-on-year.

Net loss attributable to shareholders was US$73.7 million, compared to a loss of US$52.2 million in FY2011.

Ship chartering is currently its earnings driver, accounting for about three quarters of Group revenue. This division generated gross profit of US$41.0 million in FY2012.

During FY2012, its chartering revenue increased by 16.6% to US$267.4 million due to better utilization rates and higher charter rates. 

"We are going to focus on our core competency in shipbuilding, which includes high-spec and complex offshore vessels, ship repair and fabrication," said the CFO.


Otto's stock price has declined from above 40 cents to less than 10 cents in the past 3 years. The stock recently traded at 8.4 cents. Bloomberg data