Aker ASA
Encyclopedia
Aker ASA is a Norwegian
holding company
engaged in offshore fishing
, construction
and engineering
. The company is listed on Oslo Stock Exchange
and is controlled by Kjell Inge Røkke
with 66.66% ownership through TRG Holding. The corporate headquarters are located in Oslo
, Norway.
, started up in 1841, at first producing a variety of mechanical equipment but later focusing on shipbuilding. In the 19th century the company focused on construction of whaling-, passenger-
and cargo ship
s. The company later started production of tankers
. In the 1970s Aker entered the petroleum
market, producing oil platform
s. In the 1980s Aker merged with Norcem
creating a large cement
group in Norway with focus on the offshore industry. This part of the group was sold in 1999.
Kjell Inge Røkke used his investment company Resource Group International to purchase large amounts of Aker shares, and merged the two companies in 1996 to form Aker RGI. Through the listed partial subsidiary, Aker Maritime
, Aker acquired its competitor, the offshore engineering and construction company Kværner
, in 2000 and merged Aker Maritime and Kværner into Aker Kværner. Kværner had been through major economical trouble due to a bad market in the late 1990s because of the low oil price and the failed purchase of the British
company Trafalgar House
. After the merger the holding company changed its name back to just Aker.
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
holding company
Holding company
A holding company is a company or firm that owns other companies' outstanding stock. It usually refers to a company which does not produce goods or services itself; rather, its purpose is to own shares of other companies. Holding companies allow the reduction of risk for the owners and can allow...
engaged in offshore fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
, construction
Construction
In the fields of architecture and civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the building or assembling of infrastructure. Far from being a single activity, large scale construction is a feat of human multitasking...
and engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
. The company is listed on Oslo Stock Exchange
Oslo Stock Exchange
The Oslo Stock Exchange serves as the main market for trading in the shares of Norwegian companies. It opens at 9:00am and closes 5:30pm local time...
and is controlled by Kjell Inge Røkke
Kjell Inge Røkke
Kjell Inge Røkke is a Norwegian businessman and among the richest people in Norway, controlling the Norwegian company Aker Solutions...
with 66.66% ownership through TRG Holding. The corporate headquarters are located in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
, Norway.
Group companies
As of March 2009:- Aker BioMarineAker BioMarineAker BioMarine ASA is a Norwegian fishing and seafood processing company. Based in Oslo, it operates one krill fishing vessel in Antarctica . The company is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange, but controlled 83% by Aker Seafoods, controlled by the Aker Group....
(82.9%) - Aker Capital (100%)
- Aker Clean Carbon (70%)
- Aker DrillingAker DrillingAker Drilling is a Norwegian drilling rig operation company. It is part of the Aker Group and is listed on Oslo Stock Exchange. The company has its headquarters in Stavanger, Norway....
(100%) - Aker Exploration (61.2%)
- Aker Floating ProductionAker Floating ProductionAker Floating Production is a Norwegian Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessel operator. The company is part of the Aker Group with Aker ASA owning 44.27% of the company. It is also listed on Oslo Stock Exchange....
(59.1%) - Aker HoldingAker HoldingAker Holding is a holding company that owns 40.27% of Aker Solutions. It manages the ownership of four major owners in the company, through a common agreement to insure negative control over the company.Ownership:*Aker ASA...
(60%, and thus indirectly 41% of Aker Solutions) - Aker Oilfield Services (44.4%)
- Aker Philadelphia ShipyardAker Philadelphia ShipyardAker Philadelphia Shipyard, formerly Kværner Philadelphia Shipyard, is a shipyard located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States on the site of the defunct Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, which closed in 1995....
(50.3%) - Aker SeafoodsAker SeafoodsAker Seafoods is a Norwegian Whitefish fishing, seafood processing and sale company that is part of the Kjell Inge Røkke controlled Aker Group who own 65.0% of the company. The company is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange and has its headquarters in Oslo, Norway.The company operates 15 fishing...
(64.95%) - Molde Fotball AS (100%)
History
Akers Mekaniske Verksted, commonly referred to as Akers Mek, located on the Aker River in OsloOslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
, started up in 1841, at first producing a variety of mechanical equipment but later focusing on shipbuilding. In the 19th century the company focused on construction of whaling-, passenger-
Ferry
A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
and cargo ship
Cargo ship
A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of ship or vessel that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year; they handle the bulk of international trade...
s. The company later started production of tankers
Tanker (ship)
A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...
. In the 1970s Aker entered the petroleum
Petroleum
Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...
market, producing oil platform
Oil platform
An oil platform, also referred to as an offshore platform or, somewhat incorrectly, oil rig, is a lаrge structure with facilities to drill wells, to extract and process oil and natural gas, and to temporarily store product until it can be brought to shore for refining and marketing...
s. In the 1980s Aker merged with Norcem
Norcem
Norcem AS is a Norwegian manufacturer of cement, and subsidiary of HeidelbergCement. It has plants in Brevik and Kjøpsvik.-History:Norcem was established in 1968 as a merger between the three cement factories Christiania Portland Cementfabrikk , Dalen Portland Cemetfabrikk and Nordland Portland...
creating a large cement
Cement
In the most general sense of the word, a cement is a binder, a substance that sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. The word "cement" traces to the Romans, who used the term opus caementicium to describe masonry resembling modern concrete that was made from crushed...
group in Norway with focus on the offshore industry. This part of the group was sold in 1999.
Kjell Inge Røkke used his investment company Resource Group International to purchase large amounts of Aker shares, and merged the two companies in 1996 to form Aker RGI. Through the listed partial subsidiary, Aker Maritime
Aker Maritime
Aker Maritime is a defunct Norwegian petroleum industry supply company. Listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange it was controlled by Aker RGI, owned by Kjell Inge Røkke. The company was created in 1996 when Aker's oil and gas division was merged with Maritime Group...
, Aker acquired its competitor, the offshore engineering and construction company Kværner
Kværner
Kværner was a Norway-based engineering and construction services company in existence between 1853 and 2005 when it was merged with Aker ASA. The Kværner name was used in the subsidiary Aker Kværner until April 3, 2008 when it changed name to Aker Solutions. Kværner re-emerged on 6...
, in 2000 and merged Aker Maritime and Kværner into Aker Kværner. Kværner had been through major economical trouble due to a bad market in the late 1990s because of the low oil price and the failed purchase of the British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
company Trafalgar House
Trafalgar House (company)
Trafalgar House Public Limited Company was a British conglomerate with interests in property investment, property development, engineering, construction, shipping, hotels, energy and publishing...
. After the merger the holding company changed its name back to just Aker.