One year has made a world of difference for Danish shipping company Ziton, which operates several ships for the repair of wind turbines at sea.

In early 2022, the company ran out of money to pay its lenders and the owner had to hand over the keys to the creditors.

12 months later, the shipping company and its new owners have raised more than EUR 300m in new capital, and the future suddenly looks bright.

”The last three years we have really struggled. But I’ve always been able to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and now we’re getting there,” CEO Thorsten Jalk tells ShippingWatch.

Have there been moments along the way when you thought that things were looking bleak?

”Yes, there have been a few. But the organization has really shown its worth in the face of adversity. If there’s a tailwind, it’s no problem to cycle downhill,” says Jalk.

Ziton’s problems began in 2019, and culminated last summer. The private equity firm BWB Partners threw in the towel and handed over ownership to the two largest creditors – the British investment company Pemira and the pension fund Pensam.

After the reconstruction, the company has got its finances under control and no longer has to worry about paying its debts on time.

At the same time, the market for servicing wind turbines has taken off. In the spring, Ziton signed long-term agreements with supplier Siemens Gamesa, which leases two of the company’s vessels for six years. 

”No one had really seen this coming – myself included. But it’s a total game changer in the industry that we’re now seeing such long-term agreements, and it creates a foundation in the business that we haven’t been used to at all. Investors can see that too,” says Jalk as an explanation for why the company has managed to raise around EUR 300m a year after the company had hit rock bottom.

Owners think in years, not months

With the new owners and the agreements with Siemens Gamesa, Ziton is ready to take advantage of the recovery in the wind turbine market, which, according to the CEO, is already underway.

”We have been ahead of the curve, and our challenge has always been that it takes a while for turbines to be repaired,” he says.

”But in the last six months, many turbines have reached an age where faults are starting to appear. This means that we get a much better coverage of our ships. The turbines that are being installed now will also be there for 20-30 years. Therefore, there will be an increased focus on having the setup needed to service them on an ongoing basis,” says the CEO.

What does the future look like for Ziton under the new owners, who came in through the back door after the reconstruction?

”The important thing for us is that our owners believe in us and in the industry. They also have the means to support us if we should run into stormy weather again.”

”I don’t know how long they’ll be with us. They control that and I run the store. However, they have emphasized to us that they are here for years, not months,” adds Jalk.

Could an IPO be a possibility when the owners move on?

”Being listed is not necessarily a good thing. Investors look at growth from quarter to quarter. This presents a fundamental challenge in relation to the green transition, because it requires large investments, and this will sometimes affect earnings. I can’t rule out that it will happen one day. But the company is not there yet.”

Ship purchase

A large part of the new capital comes from a EUR 150m bond loan and a EUR 100m loan from the Danish private equity firm Core Sustainability Capital, which focuses on financing the green transition.

Core Sustainability Capital is backed by the pension company Velliv and lends money with green requirements that companies must meet over time. 

For example, Ziton must reach several targets for fuel consumption on its ships within a number of years. If this is not achieved, the interest rate on the loan increases.

The rest of the money comes from Pemira, which previously owned the Danish telecommunications company TDC, and Pensam. The two companies hold a respective 55 percent and 45 percent of the shares in Ziton.

”The new capital structure means that we can now once again focus 100 percent on running the company and hopefully never get into the situation we were in last year,” Jalk says to ShippingWatch.

In addition to getting rid of old debts and improving the working capital, a large part of the money has been used to buy one of the two ships that will start operating for Siemens Gamesa later this year.

A few weeks ago, Ziton took over the new vessel Wind Energy, which is currently in China. It will sail to Europe in mid-September, where it will be modernized at a shipyard to the same standard as its sister ship Wind Enterprise.

Among other things, the vessel will have its legs lengthened so that they can protrude deeper, while the on-board gym and washroom will also need an overhaul.

Following the purchase of the latest vessel, Ziton now owns five vessels: Wind Energy, Wind Enterprise, Wind Server, Wind Pioneer and Wind.