Cadeler flexes muscles after mega-merger as offshore wind vessel orders hit record
Company billed as world's largest WTIV player says it's 'more optimistic' on US
Cadeler, owner of the world’s largest fleet of jack-up offshore wind turbine installation vessels, has piled up a record backlog of orders after completing its merger with former rival Eneti.
Describing itself as the world’s leading offshore wind turbine transport and installation company, with a market capitalisation of around €1.5bn ($1.63bn), Cadeler said its updated order book, taking into account 50% of options available to customers, stood at €1.6bn at 26 March), compared with €780m at the same point in 2023.
Calculating orders with all options included, Cadeler's said its backlog hit the €1.8bn mark, with "a very high percentage of this already at the final investment state."
Taking into account increased fleet size, completion of upgrades and demand, the company said revenues are expected to be in the range of €225m-€245m in 2024.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) were forecast at €105m-€125m.
Highlights of the past year included signing two contracts valued at €500m-€700m with Orsted for the Hornsea 3 offshore wind farm, described as the biggest deal in Cadeler’s history.
More recently, in February 2024, Cadeler signed a transport and installation contract with Orsted and Polska Grupa Energetyczna for the Baltica 2 offshore wind farm in the Baltic Sea.
International ambitions
"I am pleased to see a solid result for 2023 where Cadeler has focused on strategic scale-up to prepare for the future. We have now built a solid foundation along with the accumulation of a record-breaking backlog of orders in line with our promises to our investors," stated Mikkel Gleerup, CEO of Cadeler.
The company is also monitoring markets in the Americas. "While Cadeler’s cautious approach to the United States proved to be correct so far, Cadeler now holds a more optimistic view, and will be involved in the American market this year," the company stated. "As a global company, Cadeler is continuously looking into other markets, such as South America."
Cadeler currently has six new build vessels on order and, according to Gleerup, took "important steps" in 2023 to securing what he described as "attractive debt financing for our operating vessels and newbuilds".
Cadeler said it is "actively bidding on tenders beyond 2031, which will continue to strengthen the contract backlog even further".
“Cadeler... is well positioned to provide partners with access to a still wider and more flexible fleet of next-generation offshore windfarm installation vessels. This will enable the construction of larger and more complex projects to address the growing global demand for offshore wind power,” Gleerup said.
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