Spain’s Boluda Towage said it agreed to buy Hull-based SMS Towage Ltd for an undisclosed sum, taking over its staff and fleet. 

SMS started operations in 1992 as a ship management company and later started its harbour and offshore towage services, making it a major player in the UK towage market, operating in the Tyne, Tees, Humber, Portsmouth, South Wales, and Belfast areas with a fleet of 20 tugs. 

Boluda already operates in the ports of Invergordon, London, Liverpool, and Southampton. 

After the official closing of the transaction, SMS will be part of Boluda Towage’s organization in the UK, and the new brand name will be Boluda Towage SMS. The local management team of Boluda Towage SMS will report to Philip Dulson, General Manager of Boluda Towage in the UK. 

SMS Towage owner Paul Escreet said: “The decision for us to accept the opportunity to sell SMS Towage to Boluda Towage came at just the right time, as we embark on a new chapter of business growth and development.”