Abu Dhabi, 3 February 2015: The selling shareholders declare the postponement of selling 40% ordinary shares in the share capital of Masar Solutions PJSC ("Massar" or the "Company"), by way of an initial public offering ("IPO") to UAE investors (individuals) and a listing of the Company's issued share capital on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (the "ADX").

A significant interest was expressed from a broad spectrum of sophisticated institutional investors and family offices, who remarked on the robustness of the Company's business model, its impressive track record, experienced management, financial strength and its growth prospects.  However, some investors were unable to submit their applications within the offer period on account of the continued volatility in oil prices, which in turn had an impact on the regional and international capital markets. As a result, insufficient levels of applications were received.

The Shareholders Committee has therefore concluded that it would be in the best interests of the both the Company and existing and potential shareholders to postpone the IPO until such time as oil prices are more stable.  The Company and its advisers will keep this under constant review. In the meantime, those investors who completed their applications for shares will be immediately refunded through the lead receiving banks.

Paul Greenwood, Chief Executive Officer of Massar, commented:

"With market conditions as they are, it is clearly in everyone's interests to wait until things improve.  It's worth noting that we have conducted the offer at a time when the business is going from strength to strength. We are making excellent commercial progress, as we will be demonstrating through our newsflow in the coming weeks and months, especially in the new supply chain services market.  We can also take comfort that the enhanced brand awareness resulting from the publicity surrounding the IPO is already paying dividends in the form of higher levels of engagement with potential new customers. We remain very confident about our prospects." 

Background to Massar:

Massar is a public joint stock company established and operating from 1998 in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, UAE, and today, is a market leader in fleet solutions, vehicle rental and supply chain solutions. 

The Company's current shareholders are Abu Dhabi Investment Company ("Invest AD") and Abu Dhabi National Energy Company P.J.S.C ("TAQA"). Invest AD and TAQA own 51% and 49% of the existing shares respectively.

The Company provides a comprehensive range of services across three core divisions: fleet solutions, vehicle rental services, and supply chain solutions to government, semi-government and private sector clients operating in the UAE's industrial and commercial sectors.

Massar business model combines the core stable income from the fleet solutions and vehicle rental divisions generated from short-to-medium term lease, fleet management and rental contracts - with targeted growth from the supply chain solutions operations, which was established in 2014 to address the growing demand for outsourced logistics services in the UAE and GCC region.

The Company has secured a strong market position by leveraging its competitive advantages, including its comprehensive service offering and deep market knowledge, efficient management of the asset lifecycle, strong purchasing power, leading technology and well-established relationships with governmental clients.

Massar currently owns and operates a fleet of approximately 9,755 vehicles and manages a further fleet of approximately 6,755 for third party clients. It is diversified across all passenger and commercial vehicle classes, including buses, light/medium/heavy commercial vehicles, and light passenger vehicles. The Company plans to increase its fleet and managed vehicles to 16,000 and 20,000 units respectively over the next five years.

Massar's financial year starts on 1 January and ends on 31 December each year. For the nine month period ended 30 September 2014, the Company had net profit, revenue, and total assets of AED 64.9 million, AED 342.1 million, and AED 1,055.5 million respectively. For financial years ended 31 December 2011, 2012, and 2013, net profit was AED 93.9 million, AED 111.0 million, and 129.4 million respectively. The Company achieved strong net profit margins for the full financial years, exceeding 20%.

Massar has a clear strategic direction for its future growth:

Fleet Solutions: As the foundation of the Company's stable profits, this division will consolidate its service offerings and also grow its suite of value-add products. The Company is focused on expanding its brand and presence into Dubai and the Northern Emirates and diversify its customer base by focusing on revenue from the private sector.

Vehicle Rental: The Company is seeking to build on its existing platform through the launch of new products, such as a private usage-based consumer lease product in partnership with Arvento; in addition to growing the Payless Car Rental brand in Dubai and the Northern Emirates with future branch openings planned in Dubai, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah.

Supply Chain Solutions: Established to fulfil the regional need for outsourced logistics and after identifying opportunities in the Fast Moving Consumer Goods ("FMCG") sector, is foreseen to be the largest contributor to future growth through increasing the operational units from 150 to 1,000 units, and investment into additional warehouse capacity and services.

Enquiries:
Public Relations Manager
Bell Pottinger
- Archie Berens 055 559 7407
- Layla Haroon 0556360425
- Rima Ali 055 559 7414

© Press Release 2015