Boluda adds 16 tugs and eight barges with Muller acquisition

By Elena Vasquez

Boluda has acquired Muller Dordrecht in an undisclosed-value deal that adds 16 tugs and eight barges to the Spanish towage group’s global fleet. The Dutch offshore towage and heavy-transport specialist gives Boluda an established North Sea and Baltic base.

What does Muller add to Boluda’s fleet?

Founded in 1918 and headquartered in Dordrecht, Muller operates as a century-old family business with seven specialist offshore tugs. Those vessels handle complex marine transportation, rig moves, anchor handling and offshore wind projects.

The transaction gives Boluda full ownership, while the Dutch company continues under the name Boluda Muller Towage. Its existing management team will remain in place, and the business will retain its focus on offshore towage and marine projects worldwide.

The acquired package contains 24 marine units: 16 tugs and eight barges. Seven tugs carry the specialist offshore focus, extending Boluda’s capabilities across the North Sea and Baltic markets.

The fleet includes En Avant 30, rated at 120 tonnes of bollard pull, and En Avant 25 and En Avant 26, each rated at 90 tonnes. En Avant 30’s rating stands 30 tonnes above the two 90-tonne vessels, all of which can operate offshore and in ports.

Muller has supported offshore energy and infrastructure work ranging from transporting wind-turbine foundations and offshore substations to heavy lifting and coastal towage. Its seven specialist tugs therefore add capability for project movements as well as broader marine support.

For shippers moving offshore-project cargo, heavy-transport carriers and freight forwarders, the 16-tug addition expands specialist marine-project capacity available through Boluda. It supports offshore energy and infrastructure supply chains through rig moves, anchor handling and the movement of foundations and substations.

The immediate commercial change comes through ownership rather than a new operating structure. Boluda Muller Towage will keep its name, management team and market focus, while Boluda assumes full control of the acquired assets.

Who will lead the transition?

Former chief executive and owner Bram Muller will advise the business as ownership changes. He and the company’s advisory board will remain involved, providing a management bridge through the transition to full Boluda control.

Boluda Towage executive chairman Vicente Boluda Ceballos said the acquisition would “broaden the group’s specialist offshore capabilities.” He also said Muller could continue developing its operations alongside Boluda’s existing European business.

The Muller family said joining the Spanish group would provide “additional financial capacity for investment, fleet expansion and recruitment.” The family identified those resources as necessary in an increasingly capital-intensive offshore market, where Boluda can support further growth of the specialist fleet.

How does the deal fit Boluda’s expansion?

The Muller purchase follows last October’s $640 million agreement to acquire Boskalis’ harbour towage and salvage operations in Australia and Papua New Guinea. Boluda said that agreement would expand its reach to more than 230 ports across five continents.

The Boskalis agreement covers harbour and salvage operations, while Muller contributes offshore tugs, barges and heavy-transport capability. Together, the two deals would give Boluda a broader mix of port, salvage and specialist marine-project services.

Last week, sister company Boluda Shipping separately agreed to acquire Dutch multimodal operator Samskip. The agreement would create a shortsea network with 32 vessels, 18 routes and operations across 28 countries.

For forwarders, that shortsea network remains a future option rather than an immediate extension of Muller’s North Sea and Baltic services. Samskip’s planned January 2027 closing depends on regulatory approvals, while the Muller assets have already joined the group.

The sequence matters because each transaction adds a different transport layer: specialist offshore towage from Muller, harbour and salvage operations from Boskalis, and shortsea capacity from Samskip. Together, they could give shippers and forwarders a broader service chain if the pending Samskip approval is secured.

Boluda’s next test is whether the promised investment becomes additional tugs and crews as Samskip approaches its planned January 2027 close. Regulatory clearances remain the gating item for the shortsea network, while fleet expansion and recruitment will determine how quickly the offshore platform grows.