Summary 2014

• Ferd Capital increased its ownership interest in Interwell from 34% to 58%
• Ferd Capital sold the remaining companies in the venture capital portfolio to Verdane Capital
• Ferd Capital built up a 10% stake in the stock exchange listed company PGS, becoming its single largest shareholder
• Ferd Capital carried out a comprehensive strategy process
• The portfolio companies delivered mixed results as they experienced very different underlying markets

Market
The global macroeconomic climate was relatively calm in 2014. The European markets continued on the path of low growth, while the American market showed stronger signs of improvement. In contrast, some areas of the Norwegian economy looked weaker, with this primarily driven by the large fall in the price of oil and the accompanying slowdown in the oil sector. As a result, oil and gas-related companies reported weaker results in 2014, while other sectors experienced more variable performance.

Ferd Capital again experienced intense competition for new investment opportunities in 2014, and anticipates that this will continue to be the case.

Portfolio companies
2014 was an eventful year for many of our portfolio companies:
 

• 2014 was a challenging year for Aibel with a significant fall in the level of activity in the market and in the price of oil. The company focused in 2014 on increasing its competitiveness and on making capacity adjustments. The improvement programs and adjustments that have been completed and those that are ongoing will ensure that Aibel is able to strengthen its position and will lay the foundations for future growth.
• Elopak made further progress with its focus on the aseptic market with the start of commercial sales of its aseptic filling machinery and roll-fed aseptic cartons.
• TeleComputing grew well in 2014 in all business areas, and revenue looks set to continue to increase thanks to the company starting 2015 with a larger order backlog than at any time in its history. The company further strengthened its position in the Rogaland region by purchasing the IT service provider Alcom.
• Mestergruppen reported very good results in 2014. The company steadily increased its market share throughout 2014 and grew more strongly than the market. At the same time, its profit margin increased thanks to the introduction of efficiency measures that have made the company well positioned for further improvements in 2015.
• Interwell reported another year of significant organic growth and also became a more robust company by increasing its presence and activities in a number of geographical regions. The company’s continuous technology development program was also successful and is laying strong foundations for future growth.
• After much hard and focused work, Swix achieved first place for the first time in the Norwegian national supplier test (Leverandørtesten) for the sporting goods sector in 2014. Swix also continued to focus on its online presence by launching a new version of its website and by purchasing Skisporet.no, the leading portal for information about the preparation status of cross-country skiing trails.
• Servi generated revenue of NOK 892 million last year, making 2014 a record year for the company. It also made significant investment throughout the year in additional growth initiatives, primarily by upgrading its cylinder factory in Rissa, purchasing Offshore Hydraulics AS in Kristiansand and establishing Servi Fluid Power in Houston.

Transactions
In January, Ferd Capital increased its ownership interest in Interwell from 34% to 58%, and all the active founders continued their involvement in the company, both as shareholders and as key employees.

Ferd Capital sold its ownership interests in Napatech A/S, Streaming Media AS, Eniram OY, CFEngine AS and Arkex Ltd to Verdane Capital VIII K/S. The sale led to Ferd Capital exiting the venture capital segment, and freed up resources to focus on larger investments going forward.

In December, Ferd Capital built up a 10.1% stake in the stock exchange listed company PGS, becoming its single largest shareholder. Ferd Capital’s aim is to contribute actively to growing the company further.

Organisation
The Ferd Capital business area had 9 employees at the end of the year, who represent a broad range of experience from Ferd and previous employment. The members of the Ferd Capital team are all able to take on a range of roles in carrying out projects for evaluating new investments and during the ownership phase of our portfolio companies.

Future prospects
Ferd Capital has a portfolio of strong companies that are well placed to continue to create value in 2015 and future years.

Ferd also has a sizeable unused investment capacity, and will focus on working proactively with new investment opportunities, both in the form of “add-ons" to existing portfolio companies and potential new portfolio companies.