CMB considers next step for aviation group

   Compagnie Maritime Belge (CMB) said it plans to grow its aircraft and aviation services company ASL Aviation Group.
   Antwerp-based CMB entered the passenger and cargo aviation business in 1998, and it’s been one of the fastest emerging operations in the company’s transport assets portfolio. CMB is known in the maritime industry for its fleet of post-Panamax-, cape- and handy-size bulk vessels.
   ASL is a joint venture between CMB (51 percent) and 3P Air Freighters (49 percent), a private equity fund managed by Petercam. The companies have appointed Citigroup as advisors to assist in “exploring potential strategic options” for ASL, CMB said in a statement Wednesday.
   Through internal growth and acquisitions, ASL has accumulated a fleet of about 90 planes, ranging from Boeing 737 passenger aircraft and Airbus 300 freighters to Hercules and ATR 72-500s. The planes are either leased to express carriers, such as DHL, FedEx, UPS and TNT, or airlines.