German container shipping company Hapag-Lloyd announced Wednesday it has reached a deal to acquire NileDutch, based in the Netherlands, strengthening Hapag-Lloyd's position in the African market.
The sale and purchase agreement will see Hapag-Lloyd acquire all shares of Nile Dutch Investments B.V., subject to the approval of antitrust authorities.
Rotterdam-headquartered NileDutch is among leading providers of container services from and to West Africa. The company currently offers 10 liner services, around 35,000 TEU of transport capacity and a container fleet of around 80,000 TEU, the company connects Europe, Asia and Latin America with West and South Africa.
Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd, said, “Africa is an important strategic growth market for Hapag-Lloyd. The acquisition of NileDutch strengthens our position in West Africa and will be an excellent addition to our existing activities on the continent. Our combined customer base will benefit from a denser network from and to Africa as well as from a much higher frequency of sailings. We welcome the new colleagues from NileDutch and hope that together we can further develop our business in Africa in the years to come.”
With a fleet of 234 containerships and a total transport capacity of 1.7 million TEU, Hapag-Lloyd is is one of the leading operators in the Transatlantic, Middle East, Latin America and Intra-America trades. Its 121 liner services connect between more than 600 ports on all the continents.
Wim van Aalst, President of NileDutch, said, “Hapag-Lloyd and NileDutch are a very good fit and I am happy that we join forces. Combining our business and expertise in West Africa with Hapag-Lloyd´s worldwide network will enable us to make the next step and further develop the Africa business.”