Boskalis
Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V., stylized as Boskalis, is one of the biggest dredging companies of the world. Traditionally, Boskalis' core activity is dredging, but today they also offer services such as the construction and maintenance of inland and offshore infrastructure, maritime services and contracting to the offshore energy sector, towage services, emergency response, and salvage services. Boskalis was established in 1910 by a group of families in Sliedrecht, the Netherlands. Its headquarters are located in Papendrecht, the Netherlands.
Company Structure
In 1971 the company went to the stock market and became a public company.[1] Present day, HAL Investments BV is by far Boskalis’ biggest shareholder owning just over 45% of the share.[2] In March 2022, the investment company announced that they want to take over Boskalis.[3] According to HAL, Boskalis is better off as a private company. Boskalis is examining the bid.
Boskalis has a history of expanding to the foreign market and of diversification by providing different services. These strategies did not turn out to be a success. At the beginning of the 80s, the company was almost bankrupt. By focusing again on dredging and selling all the services that did not have anything to do with that, the company could survive.
Since 2000, Boskalis is again looking for ways to grow, although it focuses on maritime services. Present day, Boskalis has over 130 group companies in around 40 countries over the world. Furthermore, Boskalis has over 25 joint operations.
Boskalis uses a two-tier Board model, which means that management and supervision are segregated. The company has a Group Management, consisting of the members of the Board of Management and the Group Directors. The Group Management meets on a regular basis so that the Board of Management can obtain a full overview of the activities in the divisions of the company, to align the day-to-day management across the company and to ensure optimal exchange of information between the divisions.
Board of Management
The Board of Management consists of four members and is chaired by Peter Berdowski. It is responsible for the day-to-day management of the business. Furthermore, it is responsible for the continuity of the company and for setting out and realizing the company’s strategy. The remuneration is reported differently in the Annual report and the Remuneration report. The following numbers are from the Annual report 2021.
Name | Function | Remuneration x1000 EUR |
---|---|---|
Peter Berdowski | Chairman | 2,935 EUR |
Theo Baartmans | Member | 1,865 EUR |
Bart Heijermans | Member | 1,409 EUR |
Carlo van Noort | Chief Financial Officer | 1,362 EUR |
Supervisory Board
The Supervisory Board is responsible for supervising the Board of Management on the strategy and on management performance, and for advising the Board of Management. There are three committees that the Supervisory Board works in: the Audit Committee, the Remuneration Committee and the Selection and Appointment Committee.
Name | Function | Remuneration x1000 EUR |
---|---|---|
Jeroen van der Veer | Chairman | 73 EUR |
Jack de Kreij | Deputy Chairman | 57 EUR |
Daan Sperling | Member | 58 EUR |
Jacqueline Tammenoms Bakker | Member | 54 EUR |
Jaap van Wiechen | Member | 58 EUR |
Renée Jones-Bos | Member | 52 EUR |
Accountant
From the 2022 financial year on, KPMG is Boskalis’ auditor.[6] Before, the external auditor was Ernst & Young Accountants LLP (EY), but the maximum term of appointment has expired. KPMG and Ernst & Young are together with PwC and Deloitte the ‘Big Four’.[7] These multinationals are responsible for 60 percent of the mandatory audits in the Netherlands. Of the market listed companies, they even have nine out of ten as clients. KPMG has a history of flaws.
Main Activity
The company is divided into three segments: Dredging & Inland Infra, Offshore Energy, and Towage & Salvage.[8] Dredging and inland infra account for the biggest part of the revenue, with more than 50%. Close second is the offshore energy segment with around 43%. Last comes towage and salvage with around 5%.
Dredging is traditionally the core activity of Boskalis. Dredging is the activity of removing material from a water environment. This material can be reused elsewhere. According to Boskalis, projects that fall under this segment can consist for example of the construction, maintenance and deepening of ports and waterways; of land reclamation; of coastal defense and riverbank protection; of the extraction of minerals; and of soil improvement. In the Netherlands, Boskalis is also involved in dry infrastructure projects such as the construction of roads and bridges.
The Offshore Energy segment consists of projects involved in oil, gas, and renewable energy companies. Boskalis is for example involved in the engineering, construction, maintenance and decommissioning of oil and gas (LNG) facilities, offshore platforms, pipelines, cables and offshore wind farms.
Towage is the service of pulling a boat along by another boat. The joint ventures Keppel Smit Towage and Smit Lamnalco are the key players in this. They have over 200 vessels to provide assistance to oil and chemical tankers, LNG carriers, container ships and more. Salvage is the service of providing assistance to vessels in distress and of removing shipwrecks and hazardous substances.
Government
Rijkswaterstaat was and still is an important commissioning party for Boskalis.[9] Rijkswaterstaat is part of the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management and in charge of the design, construction, management and maintenance of the main infrastructure facilities in the Netherlands.[10] Boskalis has a long history of becoming less dependent on Rijkswaterstaat. In doing so, it entered the foreign market with varying success.
In 1978, Boskalis received the designation ‘Royal’.[11] This designation is awarded by the king or queen and symbolizes the respect, appreciation and trust towards the recipient.[12] The most important obligation following the designation is that the recipient will refrain from anything that will damage their reputation.[13]
Paris Agreement untill Today
What has company done or refused to do since the Climate Accord of Paris? Per company, where applicable refer to research on the benefits of fossil companies in the form of subisidies etc.
Financial Results since 2015
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Year | Revenue | Profit | Dividend |
---|---|---|---|
2015 | XXX Billion EUR | XXX EUR | XXX EUR |
2016 | XXX Billion EUR | XXX EUR | XXX EUR |
2017 | XXX Billion EUR | XXX EUR | XXX EUR |
2018 | XXX Billion EUR | XXX EUR | XXX EUR |
2019 | XXX Billion EUR | XXX EUR | XXX EUR |
2020 | XXX Billion EUR | XXX EUR | XXX EUR |
2021 | XXX Billion EUR | XXX EUR | XXX EUR |
Scandals and controversies
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Current Emissions
In their annual sustainability report, Boskalis does not mention anything about the greenhouse gas emissions of scope 3.[14] Furthermore, they do not show separate numbers for scope 1 and 2. According to Boskalis, their total scope 1 and 2 CO2 emissions amounted to 1.08 million tonnes in 2021. The largest part of the CO2 footprint is linked to the vessels. Emissions from the fleet amounted to 1.06 million tonnes. The reported emissions are from the Offshore Energy division, the Dredging and Inland Infra division and from Offices. They do not include the emissions from the Towage and Salvage division, because the Towage business is incorporated in joint ventures and the Salvage operations rely on vessels from the other divisions or third parties.
Year | Scope 1 & 2 |
---|---|
2021 | 1.078 Megatonnes CO2 |
2020 | .984 Megatonnes CO2 |
2019 | 1.111 Megatonnes CO2 |
2018 | 1.180 Megatonnes CO2 |
Climate Policy and Plans
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Due Diligence
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Conclusion
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References
- ↑ Goey, F. de. (2011). B. Bouwens, K. Sluyterman, Verdiept verleden. Een eeuw Koninklijke Boskalis Westminster en de Nederlandse baggerindustrie. BMGN - Low Countries Historical Review, 126(3), 132–133. https://doi.org/10.18352/bmgn-lchr.7414
- ↑ Boskalis. (2021). Boskalis annual report 2021. Retrieved from https://boskalis.com/
- ↑ Smit, M. (2022, March 10). Investeerder HAL wil baggeraar Boskalis overnemen. RTL Nieuws. Retrieved from https://www.rtlnieuws.nl/economie/bedrijven/artikel/5293783/investeerder-hal-overname-baggeraar-boskalis-42-miljard-euro
- ↑ Boskalis. (2021) Boskalis annual report 2021. Retrieved from https://boskalis.com
- ↑ Boskalis. (2021) Boskalis annual report 2021. Retrieved from https://boskalis.com
- ↑ Boskalis. (2021, March 31). AGM 12 May 2021 agenda. Retrieved from https://boskalis.com/ir/corporate-governance/general-meeting-of-shareholders.html
- ↑ Awater, F., Kalkman, P., Koopman, E. & Staal, T. (2016, March 9). Het toezichtsprookje. De Groene Amsterdammer. Retrieved on https://www.groene.nl/artikel/het-toezichtsprookje.
- ↑ Boskalis. (2021). Boskalis annual report 2021. Retrieved from https://boskalis.com/
- ↑ Goey, F. de. (2011). B. Bouwens, K. Sluyterman, Verdiept verleden. Een eeuw Koninklijke Boskalis Westminster en de Nederlandse baggerindustrie. BMGN - Low Countries Historical Review, 126(3), 132–133. https://doi.org/10.18352/bmgn-lchr.7414
- ↑ Rijkswaterstaat. (n.d.) About us. Retrieved on 11 April, 2022 from https://www.rijkswaterstaat.nl/en/about-us
- ↑ Boskalis (n.d.). History. Retrieved on 11 April, 2022 from https://boskalis.com/about-us/history.html
- ↑ Het Koninklijk Huis. (n.d.) Predicaat Koninklijk. Retrieved on April 19, 2022 from https://www.koninklijkhuis.nl/onderwerpen/onderscheidingen/predicaat-koninklijk
- ↑ Het Koninklijk Huis. (n.d.) Predicaat Koninklijk aanvragen. Retrieved on April 19, 2022 from https://www.koninklijkhuis.nl/onderwerpen/onderscheidingen/predicaat-koninklijk/aanvragen
- ↑ Boskalis. (2021). Boskalis sustainability report 2021. Retrieved from https://boskalis.com/.
- ↑ Boskalis. (2021). Boskalis sustainability report 2021. Retrieved from https://boskalis.com/.
- ↑ Boskalis. (2020). Boskalis sustainability report 2020. Retrieved from https://boskalis.com/.
- ↑ Boskalis. (2019). Boskalis sustainability report 2019. Retrieved from https://boskalis.com/.
- ↑ Boskalis. (2018). Boskalis sustainability report 2018. Retrieved from https://boskalis.com/.