Wednesday December 22, 2021
For $ 3.6 billion
Moeller-Maersk swallows LF Logistics
Container giant Moeller-Maersk is further polishing its logistics portfolio with a multi-billion dollar takeover: the shipping group acquires LF Logistics Holdings Ltd. 100 percent – and dares to venture further into new territory apart from ocean freight.
AP Moeller-Maersk AS has partnered with LF Logistics Holdings Ltd. agreed on a takeover. As the Danish shipping company announced, it will acquire 100 percent of the Asia-Pacific-based logistics company for an enterprise value of 3.6 billion US dollars. As part of the takeover, a profit sharing of up to $ 160 million was reportedly agreed, depending on future financial performance.
The transaction is expected to close in 2022 and generate significant synergies, according to Maersk. The Wall Street Journal reported that Maersk was on the verge of acquiring LF Logistics for around $ 3 billion.
Maersk, the world’s largest container shipping company by capacity, is benefiting from the tense global delivery situation, which has driven ocean freight rates to record levels this year and caused backlogs in US ports.
Maersk takes over 250 customers worldwide
The acquisition of LF Logistics, a subsidiary of Hong Kong supply chain manager Li & Fung Ltd, will put Maersk in control of a network of 223 distribution centers across Asia and more than 250 customers worldwide, according to the LF website. LF also provides freight forwarding services to retailers, manufacturers, and other freight owners.
Maersk, based in Copenhagen, is in the process of expanding beyond sea freight into inland logistics through takeovers. The company aims to gain a larger share of the market by moving goods between Asian and US ports and then from the ports to warehouses or businesses or directly to customers.
The acquisition comes less than six months after Maersk bought two e-commerce logistics companies in August – one in the US and one in Europe – for a total of nearly $ 1 billion. Maersk had already signaled its “appetite” for larger acquisitions.