GMS was established in Abu Dhabi, UAE in 1977. In 2007 the Group was acquired by a consortium of investors, led by private equity firm Gulf Capital, and a new senior management team was appointed. At this time, the Group was operating three self-propelled SESVs (with a fourth undergoing refurbishment) and had another under construction. GMS has since successfully expanded its fleet and geographical coverage, from a local operation in Abu Dhabi to become the number one player in the Middle East, and is now the largest operator of self-propelled SESVs in the world. The Group listed on the London Stock Exchange in March 2014.

The current (2019) core fleet consists of 13 SESVs with an average age of just eight years.

The first Large Class vessel, which opened up a market sector where vessels can operate in harsh weather and deeper water environments, was constructed in 2010, with a second delivered in 2011. In 2010 when GMS Endurance was completed it was initially deployed in Saudi Arabia, whilst the second, GMS Endeavour, was mobilised to the North Sea; both markets were a first for GMS and allowed the Group to continue its growth strategy and to expand its geographic and client footprint beyond the UAE where it had predominantly been working up to that time. GMS operated entirely in the oil and gas sector until 2011 when it entered the offshore wind power installation market in North West Europe with one of its Large Class vessels, GMS Endeavour.

In 2014 GMS embarked on a programme to expand the fleet by a further six SESVs; all of these have been delivered on time and within budget; the sixth vessel, GMS Evolution, has a well workover cantilever installed and is now available to clients.