Bourbon Emerges From Long Restructuring With New Private-Equity Owners
French offshore services company Bourbon has completed its financial restructuring program with the support of two new majority shareholders. The outcome is an important step for Bourbon, which filed for financial reorganization in 2019 and went through a second round in 2025.
It has been a long road for Bourbon, once the market leader in global offshore services. Facing financial pressure during the sector's downturn, the company began deferring repayment of its debts in mid-2018 through an agreement with its creditors. An extension followed in January 2019, then a bankruptcy reorganization filing six months later. In late 2019, the Commercial Court of Marseilles approved its sale to a consortium of its creditors, led by French bank Société Générale. Bourbon Maritime chairman Gaël Bodénès was named CEO of the newly-restructured firm. The plan called for reducing the size of Bourbon's fleet to align with the state of the market, down from nearly 460 vessels to about 350.
A second round of court-managed restructuring wrapped up in July 2025, when the Commercial Court of Marseilles approved a debt-reduction plan and the sale of the firm to two private equity companies, David Kempner Capital Management and Fortress Investment.
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Under the plan, a large share of Bourbon's debt was converted to equity, and its new owners injected more capital to reduce its leverage ratio. The new funding and strengthened balance sheet will give Bourbon an opportunity to reactivate more of its stacked OSVs, extend the life of older vessels and replace hulls in its crewboat fleet. In addition, the company's three-division structure has been compressed into a single brand and entity. Bodénès remains CEO, and former SBM CEO Bruno Chabas has been named chairman.
"We have restored stability and visibility for a group that is now firmly looking ahead. The arrival of new shareholders combined with a board and a strengthened executive committee, give decisive momentum to our transformation. We are entering a new phase of action," said Bodénès in a statement.
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