Tidewater history

1956--66: Near Disaster and a Decade of Growth

Near the end of 1957, Tidewater became the first offshore marine transportation business located in the Gulf of Mexico to make a foray into foreign waters.

As the oil and gas business expanded beyond the Gulf of Mexico, Tidewater followed, initially in Venezuela in 1958 where it maintained a presence for more than 50 years, followed quickly by expansion into a variety of additional international waters.

In 1961, just five years after the company's first boat was launched, Tidewater had already made a major acquisition by purchasing the Offshore Transportation Corporation.

In 1962, Tidewater suffered a small decrease in revenues from the previous year, but the Venezuelan venture continued to be very profitable, and the company expanded its operations to include the coastal waters off California and Trinidad.

1963 Net earnings exceed $1 million for the first time.

In 1964, the company's fleet of vessels was working regularly in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Suez, the North Sea, Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela, the Gulf of Mexico, off the coastal waters of Trinidad, and along the entire United States Pacific coast.

In 1966, Tidewater revenues soared to $19,733,881, an increase of 90 percent over the previous year.

1967--83: Acquisitions, Restructuring, and the Oil Boom

In 1968, Tidewater merged with Twenty Grand Marine Services, Inc., its closest competitor in the Gulf of Mexico.

In 1969, the company acquired Hamer Hammer Service, Inc., a firm that supplied both equipment and personnel for the on-shore and offshore driving of oil well casings, and South Coast Gas Compression Company, Inc., a provider

In 1970, Tidewater reported revenues of over $50 million, and over $5 million in profits.

In 1971, Tidewater acquired interests in offshore oil production in Indonesia, Java, and Sumatra.

Hilliard Oil and Gas Company, Inc., an American oil and gas exploration firm, was purchased in 1977, the same year the board of director's decided to change the name of the Tidewater Marine Services to Tidewater, Inc.

By 1979, total revenues shot past the $200 million mark, and profits exceeded $30 million.

1984--91: A Reversal of Fortunes and an Attempted Corporate Raid

Frustrated by his inability to acquire Tidewater by legal means, in 1989 Jacobs made another offer to purchase Tidewater at $11 per share.

In 1992, Tidewater consummated a merger with Zapata Gulf Marine, doubling the size of the company’s fleet at the time.

By the end of fiscal 1994, Tidewater had completely recovered from the recession of the offshore oil industry, increased its fleet to 594 vessels, and expanded its overseas ventures.

Tidewater's Snake River Terminal was rebuilt in 1995, with a new automated truck rack, additional petroleum storage and upgraded pump and piping systems.

In 1996, Tidewater took in a major United States competitor, Hornbeck Offshore Services, Inc, adding 90 more vessels to its fleet.

Even so, the company and its investors benefited financially from the efforts as the sale of assets helped to eliminate debt taken on in the 1997 O.I.L. acquisition.

In the fourth quarter of 1998, the company's net income, on sales of $278.6 million, climbed to $126.5 million, up $81 million over the previous year.

Although a slump in the oil industry in 1999 slowed exploration and production, negatively impacting all oil service companies, Tidewater was looking beyond the inevitable potholes inherent in the industry and concentrated on plans for future expansion.

2000: Tidewater sells 40 percent interest in National Marine Service.

2003 Tidewater announces its acquisition of 27 vessels from Ensco, part of an ongoing effort to expand and upgrade its fleet.

2005 Tidewater’s corporate office in New Orleans withstands Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

2006 Tidewater celebrates its 50th anniversary and reports its second-highest annual profits in company history.

2007 Tidewater generates record revenues and profits while achieving the best safety performance in its 51-year history.

In 2008, Tidewater purchased Foss Maritime's upriver assets.

Tidewater’s fleet enhancement program continues, with over $600 million invested in new vessels during fiscal 2011.

2013 Tidewater acquires Troms Offshore Supply AS in June 2013, a Norwegian-based supply vessel operator which owned and operated four deepwater PSVs and had two additional deepwater PSVs under construction.

In July 2014, Tidewater Environmental Service, Inc. acquired the assets of West Coast Marine Cleaning, Inc., a Vancouver-based marine and industrial cleaning services company.

Safe, efficient operations are maintained, resulting in the best safety performance in company history in fiscal 2016, with no lost time accidents and an historic best 0.08 TRIR per 200,000 manhours.

In September 2017, Tidewater acquired Canada-based Island Tug and Barge (islandtug.com) and ITB Subsea (itbsubsea.com). Island Tug is the West Coast's largest bulk transporter of refined petroleum products, and ITB Subsea ranks a one of the premier submarine cable layers in Canada.

In January 2019, Upper Bay Infrastructure Partners acquired Tidewater Transportation and Terminals from Stonepeak.