The boards of directors of Bonheur ASA and Ganger Rolf ASA the listed holding companies controlled by the Fred. Olsen family in Norway, have resolved to propose a merger of the two companies.

Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, which operates four medium sized vessels on the British market, is 50/50 owned by the two.

Bonheur, currently controlling 62.66 % of the shares in Ganger Rolf, will be the surviving entity in the merger and maintain its listing on the Oslo Stock Exchange.

Ganger Rolf shareholders to receive 0.8174 Bonheur shares for every one share in Ganger Rolf representing 23.95 % ownership of the combined company on a fully diluted basis.

“The boards consider that the merger will assist in providing a more transparent and accessible corporate structure which may yield capital and operational efficiencies,” the two companies said in a statement.

“The corporate structure of Bonheur and Ganger Rolf has historically taken the form of a cross ownership between the two companies with currently Bonheur owning 62.66% of Ganger Rolf and Ganger Rolf owning 20.70% of Bonheur and where these companies generally have invested in underlying companies on a 50/50 basis,” they said.