Abu Dhabi Ports is reported to be eyeing more shipowning expansion through a deal to take over Indonesian bulker and container ship company Meratus. The deal is thought to be worth $2 billion.
The family-run Meratus has been for sale since July. And AD Ports is now the frontrunner in the Meratus sale process, outbidding the rest of the industry.
PT Meratus Line is said to be a specialized shipping company in Indonesia, established by Bapak Hen Menaro in 1957 in Surabaya, with expanding resources, Meratus transformed into an integrated shipping and logistics operator.
Meratus currently has a fleet of 54 containerships with a total capacity of 36,069 TEU, which places it 38th in the global ranking of shipping lines in terms of capacity.
AD Ports has been rapidly expanding its footprint, becoming one of the leading ports and shipping players. The group has this year signed deals in Angola, Egypt, Congo and across Central Asia, as well as growing its tanker fleet and establishing a non-vessel owning common carrier with Dubai-listed logistics company Aramex.
Over the past year AD Ports has already acquired a range of containerlines including Global Feeder Shipping and Transmar.
“This is yet another example of the ongoing consolidation in the intra-Asian container shipping space and also an example of the ascendance of both AD Ports and DP World into the container shipping space,” commented Lars Jensen, founder of consultancy Vespucci Maritime, via LinkedIn, going on to predict more consolidation in Asia in the years ahead.