Global Spectrum Shareholders Endorse Bond Issuance

Goddy Egene

Shareholders of Global Spectrum Energy Services Plc (GSES) have endorsed plans to raise fresh capital funds by way of bond issuance.

The shareholders, who gave the approval at the company’s 14th annual general meeting (AGM) in Lagos, expressed appreciation over the company’s performance over the years.

The shareholders said it had become important that the company secured fresh funds to expand its operations by way of acquiring more owned vessels.

According to them, the fresh funds would enhance the profit position of the company and enable it deliver more returns to the shareholders and value to all stakeholders.

Addressing the shareholders, the Chairman of GSES, Osahon Idemudia, said global spectrum operates in a niche area of the oil and gas industry and must continue to make investments to tap into the growing opportunities in the sector.

The chairman said it was quite commendable that the company had continued to operate without any loans, but funds its operations with revenue generated from its activities. This, he said, was an indication of management efficiency which should give comfort to its investors and shareholders.

The chairman noted that the company operates a mix of owned and leased vessels, but will function more profitably if it the fleet of owned vessels were significantly increased. He added that the need for increase in the number of vessels becomes stronger as the company has now expanded its line of services to include merchant vessel escorts with potential for appreciable contribution to revenue.

According to him, the merchant shipping escort service is a growing line of business that the company is currently giving new focus as it expands and diversifies its operations.

As part of its effort to strengthen investor confidence, the company subjected itself to a credit rating exercise on the headline of Issuer Rating by both Agusto& Co. and Data Pro, two major credit rating agencies in the country. The two agencies respectively assigned a “BBB” and “BBB+” to GSES.

The rating agency, in assigning a stable status to the company further pinned the favourable prospects for the company’s growth and profitability to factors that include the expected rebound in the consumption of crude oil as the global economy recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, favourable local content policy, and its entry into the merchant shipping security.

Global Spectrum Energy Services Plc is a marine security and logistics company, with added operational competencies in energy and engineering services in the oil and gas sector.