Published: 13 Oct 2008: TUI is to sell its container shipping line Hapag-Lloyd for €4.45 billion to focus solely on tourism.
The company´s board decided to sell Hapag-Lloyd to a consortium based in Hamburg.
According to the terms of the deal, TUI said in a statement that Hapag-Lloyd will be sold to a subsidiary of the consortium called Albert Ballin GmbH & Co. KG, and then TUI will purchase a 33.33 percent stake in that company for €700 million (US$950.53 million).
"We have, despite the adverse market environment, received a fair price for the container shipping operations," said TUI board chairman Michael Frenzel.
According to media, the sale allows the group to concentrate on its tourism business, where it is European number one with yearly sales of more than 15.5 billion euros. The shipping division generates revenues of around six billion euros. TUI said the sale gave it a "strong liquidity and financial position, opening up investment possibilities for the further expansion of TUI´s tourism possibilities."
