Government-owned investment company Finnish Industry Investment has acquired a majority holding (66.4 per cent of the shares) in Aker Arctic Technology (Aker Arctic).
Formerly owned by ailing shipbuilder STX Finland, the company's other owners, with holdings of equal size, are Finnish ABB and Norwegian company Aker Engineering and Technology.
According to an announcement by Finnish Industry Investment, the sale price for the shares was EUR9.3 million (US$12.6 million).
"Arctic shipping is expected to increase considerably in the coming years and decades. As the world's leading planning company in the development of Arctic solutions, Aker Arctic is well placed to acquire a significant market share in the field. This will naturally also have a positive impact on the company's long-term value. For this reason I see the deal as being a success from the state's point of view," said Minister of Economic Affairs Jan Vapaavuori.
In recent months the Ministry of Employment and the Economy has actively assessed the possibilities of making sure that the company's expertise stays and develops further in Finland.
"The state has a special interest in making sure that Aker Arctic, which represents important Arctic expertise, should have an ownership base which holds on to its unique skills and is open to future development. In addition to the commercial applications that are globally in use, the company's skills can be utilised to assist the Finnish Defence Forces. The skills in the company and its utilisation are in a central role when the proposals of the Marine Industry 2020 working group are implemented," Vapaavuori continued.
Aker Arctic has amassed some of Finland's most important marine industry knowledge and expertise. The company has created numerous successful vessel concepts for Arctic navigation, including the world's first so-called oblique icebreaker concept, which is currently being built at the Arctech Helsinki Shipyard.
Aker Arctic is also involved in the planning of new polar icebreakers for Canada and China, and the company has "promising prospects" in areas including the opening of the Northeast Passage.
