EMEA News
Hamburg Wants Hapag-Lloyd, Hamburg Süd Merger Talks to Resume
The city of Hamburg, the largest shareholder of Hapag-Lloyd AG (Hapag-Lloyd), wants the container shipping company to resume merger talks with Hamburg Süd to improve its chances of survival, a city official has told Reuters.
Ship & Bunker reported in March that talks had been called off at the request of Hamburg Süd's owners, the Oetker family, because the companies had failed to agree terms.
"We will do everything to accomplish this merger in the foreseeable future," Hamburg's economy minister Frank Horch said on the sidelines of a maritime conference in the northern German city of Kiel on Monday.
Horch added that the city was also keen to act as a moderator to ensure an agreement acceptable to both sides was reached, but noted that a previous attempt to merge the companies some 16 years ago had failed.
"But I believe that if we are determined to convince and are coordinated, then we have a good chance," Horch said.
The city of Hamburg has a stake of almost 37 percent in Hapag-Lloyd, with German travel group TUI AG holding 22 percent.
When merger talks were first announced in December last year, Westend Brokers Research analyst Klaus Kraenzle said that without a merger, Hamburg-Sued would run into difficulties.
If a merger were successful it would create the world's fourth-largest shipping company with an annual revenue over $13 billion, a fleet of 250 vessels, and 11,500 employees.
Hapag-Lloyd recently reported an increased net loss for 2012 of €128 million ($166 million) compared to €29 million ($37.5 million) in 2011.
