A Glasgow company providing inspection services to the offshore energy industry has closed a multi-million pound fundraising to support its continued expansion.
BGF has invested $18.9 million (£14.9m) in Sulmara, which has grown at an annual compound rate of more then 60% since it was founded in 2019 to reach revenues of $70m in its latest financial year. The company's global footprint includes offices in Glasgow, Aberdeen, Norwich, Houston, Singapore and Taipei.
Sulmara focuses on providing more efficient surveys with a lower carbon footprint. It is said to be the first services company in the offshore wind sector to sign the Climate Pledge, and recently achieved independently-verified carbon neutrality status against the BSI PAS 2060:2014 standard.
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The capital injection will support Sulmara’s continued growth trajectory, including further investment in new technologies such as uncrewed surface vessels (USVs), autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), next-generation geophysical sensors, and advanced data products. The use of these systems along with traditional survey vessels significantly reduces the environmental impact of offshore projects on behalf of clients such as Orsted, Chevron and Seaway7.
“BGF’s investment comes at an important moment for the company as we look to build on the success of our technology and innovation efforts to date and to accelerate their introduction to our service offerings," said Kevin McBarron, founder and chief executive of Sulmara.
"This significant investment of growth capital is a vote of confidence in our strategy from an established investment partner in BGF. The international growth and breadth of services now delivered demonstrates that our approach is also resonating with our clients and supports their need to reduce Scope 3 emissions as the path to NetZero matures."
As part of the deal, BGF's Richard Pugh and Davis Larssen will join the board as non-executive directors. Both have many years’ experience leading and investing in energy services and technology businesses.
“Offshore renewables and their adjacent technologies have an increasingly important role in decarbonising our energy, and an area Scotland has world-leading expertise," Mr Pugh said.
"Sulmara’s growth in the last three to four years is evidence of both the quality of their operations as well as the ability of Kevin and his team to deliver for clients while also building a truly global business. Working closely with Kevin, Mike, Davis and the rest of the management team, we look forward to supporting the next stage in Sulmara’s exciting growth journey.”
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