COVINGTON, La., June 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Hornbeck OffshoreServices, Inc. (NYSE: HOS) announced today that the Company has retained J.P.Morgan Securities Inc. ('JPMorgan') to act as its financial advisor in athorough review of strategic alternatives for its downstream tug and tankbarge ('TTB') business. This review will consider possible alternativesavailable to the Company for the TTB business, including: (i) potentialfurther growth by acquisitions, mergers or consolidations; (ii) potentialdisposition or monetization of all or a portion of the Company's ownershipinterests in the TTB business; (iii) other potential restructuringtransactions involving the use of a master limited partnership ('MLP')structure; or (iv) maintaining the status quo.
Todd M. Hornbeck, the Company's Chairman, President and Chief ExecutiveOfficer stated: 'Given the substantial pending growth in our upstream fleetover the next 24 months as a result of previously announced growthinitiatives, and absent any further growth in our TTB fleet, we currentlyexpect our overall business mix to shift from roughly 80-20 today to roughly90-10 between our OSV and TTB segments, based on relative percentages ofcurrent and pro forma operating cash flow, respectively. While our TTBbusiness has always been and continues to be a stable source of diversifiedcash flow for our Company, we have hired JPMorgan to help us explore ouroptions with regard to this segment and to see if we can unlock additionalvalue for our shareholders. It is important to note that no decision has beenmade yet. We simply want to run a disciplined process that would allow us tomake the best possible decision for the Company. We expect to announceadditional details regarding our plans for the TTB business later this year.'
Hornbeck Offshore Services, Inc. is a leading provider of technologicallyadvanced, new generation offshore supply vessels primarily in the U.S. Gulf ofMexico and select international markets, and is a leading transporter ofpetroleum products through its fleet of ocean-going tugs and tank bargesprimarily in the northeastern U.S., the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, the Great Lakesand in Puerto Rico.
