Samskip continues expansion with Seawheel takeover

Samskip continues expansion with Seawheel takeover    After weeks of speculation, Icelandic shipping-to-logistics company Samskip has confirmed it is set to acquire Ipswich, United Kingdom-based shortsea shipping operator Seawheel.
   Financial details of the deals were not disclosed. The two companies said due diligence procedures have been completed and all that remains is the final approval from the regulatory authorities.
   Seawheel offers more than 50 sailings a week to and from 13 ports in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain and Continental Europe.
   In the last few months Samskip has made clear its intentions to become a global carrier, employing prominent former A.P. Moller-Maersk executives, Flemming Jacobs as director and Michael F Hassing as chief executive officer.
   In March, Samskip bought Dutch intra-Europe shipping and intermodal operator Geest North Sea Line. Samskip said it will merge Seawheel’s operations with its own North Continent/Scandinavia/Baltic services and Geest’s North Continent/U.K./Ireland/Spain service network.
   “By acquiring a major shortsea intermodal operator like Seawheel, we will be able to achieve significant economies of scale, reducing costs whilst offering greater port coverage and sailing frequency to the benefit of our customers,' Hassing said. “With our expanding network, we are convinced that we will be able to attract more freight off roads and onto an intermodal system that combines shortsea, rail and inland waterways. This has many environmental benefits.”