FRANKFURT, March 8 (Reuters) – Hapag-Lloyd co-owner Klaus-Michael Kuehne wants the container shipping group’s prospective merger partner Hamburg-Sud to have equal say in the mooted tie-up, he told a German paper.
“My assumption is that there will be parity in the beginning,” Kuehne, who also controls Swiss logistics group Kuehne & Nagel, told daily Die Welt in an interview published on Friday.
Neither the Albert-Ballin consortium of Hapag-Lloyd investors, led by Kuehne, nor the Oetker family behind Hamburg Süd should be able to dominate the combined group, he added.
Hapag-Lloyd and Hamburg Süd, Germany’s largest container shipping companies, said in December they were exploring a merger to create a global player better able to survive the sector’s four-year slump.
Kuehne said in the interview the Oetker family would have to commit to plans to take the new company public in the medium term as a precondition for a merger agreement.
“(An initial public offering) won’t happen tomorrow or the day after but it also won’t take five years. I think a time horizon of two to three years is realistic.”
“Later, as part of an IPO, an ideal scenario would be for Oetker to maybe hold 40 percent, for me to hold a blocking minority of 25 percent or a little less in the long-term, and for the rest to be floated,” Kuehne added.
If no agreement with Oetker can be reached Kuehne would push for Hapag-Lloyd to go public on its own.
“But I do not wish for this to happen,” he added. (Reporting by Ludwig Burger; Editing by Mark Potter)
(c) 2013 Thomson Reuters, Click For Restrictions
Join the gCaptain Club for curated content, insider opinions, and vibrant community discussions.
Join the 109,835 members that receive our newsletter.
Have a news tip? Let us know.
A 37-year-old crew member was saved after spending three harrowing days adrift at sea following alleged abuse aboard a fishing vessel. Afif Efendy, a crew member of the fishing vessel...
British oil and gas major Shell on Tuesday settled a London lawsuit it brought against environmental group Greenpeace after activists boarded a Shell oil production vessel last year.
Satellite imagery show that Russian naval ships have left Moscow's base at Tartous on Syria's coast and some have dropped anchor offshore following the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad by rebel forces.
Access exclusive insights, engage in vibrant discussions, and gain perspectives from our CEO.
Sign Up
Maritime and offshore news trusted by our 109,835 members delivered daily straight to your inbox.
Essential news coupled with the finest maritime content sourced from across the globe.
Sign Up
Join The Club
