Global trade enabler DP World yesterday announced the signing of the acquisition of 100% of the Unifeeder Group for EUR 660 million from Nordic Capital Fund VIII and certain minority shareholders. Based in Aarhus (Denmark), Unifeeder operates the largest and most densely connected common user container feeder and an important and growing shortsea network in Europe, serving both deep-sea container hubs and the intra-Europe container freight market. The Group reported revenue of EUR 510 million in 2017 and EBIT margins in line with other asset-light logistics operators.
The acquisition of Unifeeder will further enhance DP World’s presence in the global supply chain and broaden their product offering to customers – the shipping lines and cargo owners – with a view to ultimately reduce inefficiencies and improve the competitiveness of global trade. The current operations of Unifeeder are complementary to DP World’s existing business and provides future growth opportunities.
Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and CEO, DP World, said: “The ever-growing deployment of ultra-large container vessels has made high-quality connectivity from hub terminals crucial for our customers and Unifeeder is a best-in-class logistics provider in this space with a strong reputation in Europe. Our aim is to leverage on the in-house expertise of Unifeeder and to accelerate growth in this scalable platform to deliver value for all stakeholders.”
Unifeeder, founded in 1977, is an integrated logistics company with the largest and bestconnected feeder and growing shortsea network in Northern Europe with connectivity to approximately 100 ports. The company provides efficient and sustainable transport solutions for international container shipping lines between international and regional ports and shortsea services to cargo owners with fully multimodal door-to-door solutions, combining seaborne transportation with road and/or rail. The business is cash generative and operates on a highly flexible cost base.
