Falkland Islands Company


The Falkland Islands Company Ltd. was founded in 1851 and was granted a Royal Charter to Trade in 1852 by Queen Victoria. Locally known as FIC, it is a diversified goods and services company owned by FIH group plc.

Businesses

Retail & Distribution
Automotive
Property
Insurance
Building and Electrical
  • Falklands Building Services and Falklands Electrical Services, providing new home builds and maintenance services.
Penguin Travel
  • Coach and mini bus provider for local airport transfers, connections and tours.
  • Driving school for cars, minibuses, heavy good vehicles and public services vehicles.
Haulage & Groundworks
  • Fleet of HGV tippers and tractor units available to hire and for contract work.
Fishing Agency: Acting as agent for over 100 fishing vessels and for cruise ships belonging to Holland America, Seabourn, Celebrity and Princess Lines, supported by its own fleet of launches and a work boat.
Flights: Agent for the MoD Airbridge service for AirTanker flights between RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire and RAF Mount Pleasant.
Falklands Removal Services: Agent for both Whites and Crown Removals with worldwide connections available.
Falklands Shipping: Shipping commercial and private containers between the UK and the Falklands on the MoD FIRS vessels southwards and wool shipments northwards.
Security''': Contracted by the Falkland Islands Government for the provision of security services at Mount Pleasant Complex for the second commercial flight from South America.

History

19th century
The Falkland Islands Company was incorporated in 1851 and received its Royal Charter on 10 January 1852. Established with an authorised capital of £100,000 its purpose was to engage in agricultural and general trading activities including establishing a shipping link with the UK. In 1888,FIC purchased J M Dean & Sons for shares. J M Dean acted as agent for farmers, and operated the West Store in the capital Stanley. The company was also a Lloyds Agent and owned a hotel and other property assets in the Islands.
20th century
1913 brought a regular shipping service to Montevideo. In the 1930s the company was regularly transporting wool to Montevideo using the ships Fitzroy and Lafonia. By 1945 the Falkland island company acquired farm property in the Falklands, amounting to total agricultural land holdings reaching 1.2m acres and 300,000 sheep. In 1962 FIC shares listed on the London Stock Exchange. making it a public company. In 1971 The company's last regular ship – the Darwin, stopped traveling between the Falklands and Montevideo.
In 1972 FIC was acquired by The Dundee Perth and London Shipping Company Limited which was then purchased by Coalite Group plc.
1989 FIC's owners, Coalite acquired by Anglo United plc in a leveraged buy out.
1991 FIC's agricultural land holdings, 4 farms consisting of 25% of the land of the Falkland Islands sold to the Falkland Islands Government following the Shackleton report.
1997 Anglo United which has an unsustainable amount of debt undergoes a capital reconstruction and distributes shares in Falkland Islands Holdings plc to its shareholders. For every 300 Anglo United shares shareholders receive 1 share in Falkland Islands Holdings. At this point the Falkland Islands Company became a full subsidiary of Falkland Islands Holdings, name changed to FIH Group plc in September 2016.