Dubai-based ports operator DP World has announced the 100 percent acquisition of Denmark-based Unifeeder Group for $694 million (660 million euros) from Nordic Capital Fund VIII, the company said on Tuesday.
Based in Aarhus, Unifeeder operators the largest and most densely connected common user container feeder and a growing shortsea network in Europe, which serves both deep-sea container hubs and the intra-Europe container freight market.
In 2017, Unifeeder reported revenue of $590 million (510m euros) and EBIT margins “in line with other-asset light logistics operators”, according to DP World, adding that the acquisition will be financed from existing balance sheet resources and is expected to close by the fourth quarter of 2018.
“We are delighted to add the Unifeeder brand under the DP World umbrella, which supports our strategy to grow in complementary sectors, strengthen our product offering and play a wider role in the global supply chain as a trade enabler,” DP World group chairman and CEO Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem said.
Bin Sulayem added that “the ever-growing deployment of ultra-large container vessels has made high-quality connectivity from hub terminals crucial for our customer and Unifeeder is a best in-class logistics provider in this space with a strong reputation in Europe.”
DP World’s aim, bin Sulayem added, is to leverage Unifeeder’s expertise to accelerate growth and add to DP World’s value proposition to international shipping lines and end cargo owners by making the global supply chain more efficient and cost effective. More
By Bernd Debusmann Jr arabianbusiness.com
