Entrec buys GT’s

Entrec has its roots in Schell, founded in 1995 as an oilfield transport firm. As the business developed it passed through the hands of Transco and Flint Energy. The company was rebranded as Entrec in 2008, and purchased in 2011 by EIS Capital Corp, which subsequently amalgamated itself into the Entrec business.
Since that initial deal, the company has been grown significantly, making a series of acquisitions to position itself as a significant service provider in the Canadian crane and special transport sector, adding Diamond B (of Lloydminster) in July 2011, Max Oilfield Services (Bonnyville) in August, KEM Enterprises (Fort McMurray) in September, Jay Reid Trucking (Bonnyville) in October, and Trak Equipment (Acheson) in November. In 2012, Entrec bought Singer Specialized Transportation in April, Mains Cranes in June, Rain Coast Cranes in October, and Tiggo Transport in November. It started this year with the purchase of Taylor Crane Services in January.
Entrec paid CAD37m in cash, and CAD20m in shares and debt. GT's has 180 employees, and operations in locations including Grande Prairie, Whitecourt, and Leduc, Alberta and Dawson Creek and Fort Nelson, B.C. Owner Greg Toews will join Entrec as vice president, operations. He said, "We are very excited to combine our team with Entrec's. We believe Entrec is a great fit for both our customers and our employees, and that the business combination will enable us to better capture significant growth in these regions."
Entrec president and COO John Stevens said, "GT's has a reputation for strong customer service in the regions it serves, and comes with an excellent management team and experienced employee base. With the combined operations of Entrec and GT's, we believe we will be well positioned to capture a significant portion of planned future investments in liquefied natural gas driven infrastructure within these regions. This is in addition to the strong market position we already enjoy in Northwest B.C. where many of the proposed LNG facilities will be constructed. The acquisition is also expected to be immediately accretive to our earnings per share for fiscal 2013, even before accounting for significant annual operating synergies."
At the time of the deal, Entrec said it owned 160 cranes, as well as a range of SPMTs and other specialist and conventional transport and lifting equipment. The GT's deal will bring its fleet size to over 200 cranes.