Van Leeuwen Wheeler eyes growth after acquisition

A BLACK Country steel tubing supplier has strengthened its market position with the acquisition of a Scottish firm in an undisclosed deal.

Van Leeuwen Wheeler, based in Brierley Hill, has taken on the Aberdeen assets of Mardale Pipes after the firm went into administration. The value of the transaction has not been disclosed.

Mardale, a specialist supplier of duplex and super duplex stainless steel to the oil and gas industry, is expected to add significant value to Van Leeuween Wheeler’s offering.

The corporate law team at Higgs & Sons, also based in Brierley Hill,  advised Van Leeuwen Wheeler on the acquisition.

The acquisition sees Van Leeuwen Wheeler gain a 9,000sq ft warehouse at Dyce, together with stocks and machinery. The company is relocating its Dundee sales team to the new Aberdeen location and will be retaining members of the Mardale team.
 
Part of the Netherlands-based Van Leeuwen Pipe and Group, Van Leeuwen Wheeler also has a major stockholding hub in Middlesbrough. Together with the Brierley Hill site, the firm has access to over 100,000 tonnes of tube in group stocks.  

With a growing presence in the offshore sector, the company supports operations in many of the major oil and gas fields around the world, both from its UK and European stocks and via mill direct supply.
 
David Ellis, a partner and head of insolvency at Higgs, led the team advising Van Leeuwen Wheeler. He said:  “It was an interesting transaction that had to be completed in a very short time scale.
 
“We received initial instructions on Friday (February 25) and had to liaise with Scottish solicitors dealing with the property aspects of the transaction in a different legal jurisdiction while negotiating the purchase with the administrators with a view to completing both the lease assignment and the purchase within a week.”
 
Van Leeuwen’s managing director, Jeff Blakey, said he was pleased with the outcome.

“We have long recognised the importance of having an active presence in Aberdeen and this development gives us a stockholding capability at the heart of the oil and gas industry.  With the acquisition of this strategic location, we are uniquely positioned to offer a large portfolio of materials backed up by the necessary technical expertise.”
 
He said the prompt response of the law firm had helped to complete the deal in record time.