MSC's acquisition of 49.9% of HHLA shares received final regulatory approval

Source：Hyqfocus Release Time：2024-11-19 Number of views：

Mediterranean Shipping (MSC), the world's largest liner company, has received final regulatory approval for its acquisition of a minority stake in Hamburg Ports & Logistics AG (HHLA).

On November 15, HHLA reported that all closing conditions for the voluntary public offer had been met. The final pending condition is acquisition control permission from Ukraine, where HHLA has an investment in a terminal at the port of Odessa. The European Commission and the Hamburg parliament have previously approved the investment deal.

MSC will pay €16.75 per Class A share to HHLA shareholders who have submitted their shares in the public tender offer to be completed in December 2023. Holders submitted about 10% of the shares, while MSC acquired a further 12% in open market transactions.

Under the terms of the agreement, MSC will acquire additional shares from the City of Hamburg, giving it a total stake of 49.9% in HHLA. The City of Hamburg will retain a 51.1 percent stake and the two parties have reached a working agreement on the management of HHLA.

MSC has agreed to inject capital into HHLA for the modernization and expansion of its business. In addition to the terminal in Hamburg, the company has an inland logistics network and international investments.

MSC's acquisition of HHLA was approved

This investment comes at a time when HHLA performance has rebounded from the challenges of the past few years, achieving positive growth in the first nine months of 2024. In the first nine months of 2024, revenue increased by 8.5% to nearly 1.2 billion euros. Operating income from logistics drove overall growth, with earnings before tax and minority interests up nearly 32 percent. Container throughput at the Hamburg terminal was essentially flat compared to the same period last year, at just under 4.5 million TEUs. The HHLA noted that the disruption caused by the Russian-Ukrainian war and the impact of the recent diversion of container ships in the Red Sea have affected routes to Northern Europe.

MSC chose to invest in HHLA because of the need to meet the competition in the Nordic logistics market, while also providing a strong injection for the future development of the Port of Hamburg. In recent years, the competition among the major ports in Northern Europe has become increasingly fierce, and major ports, including Rotterdam and Antwerp, continue to expand investment and optimize service capabilities. In this context, HHLA urgently needs external capital and resources to maintain competitiveness, and MSC's capital injection clearly makes up for this shortcoming. In addition, MSC has committed to increase the volume of cargo in the Port of Hamburg and set up a German headquarters in Hamburg, which undoubtedly strengthens the Port of Hamburg's position as a European logistics hub.

From a broader perspective, MSC's investment behavior reflects a new trend in the integration of capital and resources among global shipping giants. On the basis of traditional shipping services, MSC is gradually moving to the higher end of the logistics supply chain, enhancing its control over the entire supply chain by holding port and logistics assets. This is not only the strengthening of their core competitiveness, but also in the context of global supply chain restructuring, the precise layout of the future pattern.

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