Funds managed by global investment firm Carlyle and private equity firm Stellex Capital Management recently announced it had agreed to sell Titan Acquisition Holdings to an undisclosed affiliate of Lone Star Funds.
Titan specializes in ship repair services and marine and heavy complex fabrication.
Titan is made up of Vigor Industrial LLC, an infrastructure, defense, and maritime services company based in Portland, Ore.; MHI Holdings LLC, a ship repair and maintenance company based in Norfolk, Va.; and Continental Maritime, San Diego. Key Titan customers include the Navy, Coast Guard, Military Sealift Command, Boeing, cruise lines, fishing fleets, barges, ferry services, and other key commercial U.S. government customers.
“We are proud of the many accomplishments of the Titan team over the course of our partnership,” Derek Whang, managing director at Carlyle, said in a statement. “Throughout a particularly unprecedented time, with the pandemic and supply chain constraints, the Titan team has continually executed on its strategy to successfully grow the business, refine its market segments, and expand into new geographic territories. Titan is well-positioned to maintain its positive trajectory, and we wish the team continued success in its next phase of growth.”
“From the moment Stellex acquired MHI in 2015, we have partnered with management to capitalize on changing market dynamics to build a stronger company to further serve customers with quality and reliability,” David Waxman, managing director, Stellex, said. “The result of our investment focus was the combination of MHI with Vigor and the formation in 2019 of Titan, now a bi-coastal leader in critical ship repair services, and commercial and defense-related fabrication services. It was an incredible experience working closely with the talented Titan team, and we look forward to seeing the company continue to prosper.”
“We are grateful to Carlyle and Stellex for enabling the strategic investments made over the past several years, which include the acquisition of CMSD, the repurchase of critical assets, and investments in technologies and equipment aimed at improving our service offerings,” said Jim Marcotuli, Titan CEO. “Titan and its operating companies will remain rooted in existing values and focused on priorities of safety, compliance, quality, customer and competitive. Under new ownership, we will focus on sustaining improvements made, identifying additional areas of improvement, and opportunities for future growth. Valued customers will continue to see Titan operating companies deliver high quality service in everything we do. We see this transaction with Lone Star, when completed, as the next step in our evolution, representing a belief on their part that Titan entities are on a steady and positive path to sustainable growth.”
Marcotuli will remain as Titan CEO, and other company leadership is expected to also remain intact.