SEACOR Holdings Announces Sale of National Response Corporation, NRCES and SEACOR Response

Seacor Holdings Press Release Feb 08 2012

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 02/08/12 -- SEACOR Holdings Inc. (NYSE: CKH) today announced that it reached an agreement to sell a portion of its environmental business to J.F. Lehman & Company, a leading middle-market private equity firm focused on the defense, aerospace and maritime sectors. The businesses to be sold include National Response Corporation (NRC), one of the largest providers of oil spill response services in the United States; NRC Environmental Services Inc., a leading provider of environmental and industrial services on the West Coast; and SEACOR Response Inc., which provides oil spill and emergency response services to customers in various international markets. The transaction, which is expected to close by the end of February 2012, does not include O'Brien's Response Management Inc., a leading provider of crisis and emergency preparedness and response management services, which will continue to be a subsidiary of SEACOR post-closing. Houlihan Lokey is serving as exclusive financial advisor to SEACOR in connection with this transaction.

SEACOR is a global provider of equipment and services primarily supporting the offshore oil and gas and marine transportation industries. SEACOR offers customers a diversified suite of services including offshore marine, aviation, inland river, marine transportation, environmental, commodity trading and logistics and offshore and harbor towing. SEACOR is focused on providing highly responsive local service combined with the highest safety standards, innovative technology, modern, efficient equipment and dedicated professional employees.

This release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements concerning management's expectations, strategic objectives, business prospects, anticipated economic performance and financial condition and other similar matters involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that could cause the actual results, performance or achievements of results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements discussed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks, uncertainties and other important factors include, among others: decreased demand and loss of revenues as a result of U.S. government implemented moratoriums directing operators to cease certain drilling activities and any extension of such moratoriums (the "Moratoriums"), weakening demand for the Company's services as a result of unplanned customer suspensions, cancellations, rate reductions or non-renewals of vessel charters and aviation equipment or failures to finalize commitments to charter vessels and aviation equipment in response to Moratoriums, increased government legislation and regulation of the Company's businesses could increase cost of operations, increased competition if the Jones Act is repealed, liability, legal fees and costs in connection with providing spill and emergency response services, including the Company's involvement in response to the oil spill as a result of the sinking of the Deepwater Horizon in April 2010, decreased demand for the Company's services as a result of declines in the global economy, declines in valuations in the global financial markets and illiquidity in the credit sectors, including, interest rate fluctuations, availability of credit, inflation rates, change in laws, trade barriers, commodity prices and currency exchange fluctuations, the cyclical nature of the oil and gas industry, activity in foreign countries and changes in foreign political, military and economic conditions, changes in foreign and domestic oil and gas exploration and production activity, safety record requirements related to Offshore Marine Services, Marine Transportation Services and Aviation Services, decreased demand for Marine Transportation Services and Harbor and Offshore Towing Services due to construction of additional refined petroleum product, natural gas or crude oil pipelines or due to decreased demand for refined petroleum products, crude oil or chemical products or a change in existing methods of delivery, compliance with U.S. and foreign government laws and regulations, including environmental laws and regulations, the dependence of Offshore Marine Services, Marine Transportation Services and Aviation Services on several customers, consolidation of the Company's customer base, safety issues experienced by a particular helicopter model that could result in customers refusing to use that helicopter model or a regulatory body grounding that helicopter model, which also could permanently devalue that helicopter model, the ongoing need to replace aging vessels and aircraft, industry fleet capacity, restrictions imposed by the Shipping Acts and Aviation Acts on the amount of foreign ownership of the Company's Common Stock, operational risks of Offshore Marine Services, Marine Transportation Services, Harbor and Offshore Towing Services and Aviation Services, effects of adverse weather conditions and seasonality, future phase-out of Marine Transportation Services' double-bottom tanker, dependence of spill response revenue on the number and size of spills and upon continuing government regulation in this area and Environmental Services' ability to comply with such regulation and other governmental regulation, changes in National Response Corporations' Oil Spill Removal Organization classification, liability in connection with providing spill response services, the level of grain export volume, the effect of fuel prices on barge towing costs, variability in freight rates for inland river barges, the effect of international economic and political factors in Inland River Services' operations, sudden and unexpected changes in commodity prices, futures and options, global weather conditions, political instability, changes in currency exchanges rates, and product availability in Commodity Trading and Logistics activities, adequacy of insurance coverage, the attraction and retention of qualified personnel by the Company and various other matters and factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control. In addition, these statements constitute the Company's cautionary statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. It is not possible to predict or identify all such factors. Consequently, the foregoing should not be considered a complete discussion of all potential risks or uncertainties. The words "estimate," "project," "intend," "believe," "plan" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of the document in which they are made. The Company disclaims any obligation or undertaking to provide any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement to reflect any change in the Company's expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which the forward-looking statement is based. The forward-looking statements in this release should be evaluated together with the many uncertainties that affect the Company's businesses, particularly those mentioned under "Forward-Looking Statements" in Item 7 on the Company's Form 10-K and SEACOR's periodic reporting on Form 10-Q and Form 8-K (if any), which are incorporated by reference.

For additional information, contact
Molly Hottinger
(954) 627-5278
or visit SEACOR's website at www.seacorholdings.com

Source: SEACOR Holdings Inc.


Date released: Feb 08 2012