Tropical to acquire V.I. Cargo Services

Tropical to acquire V.I. Cargo Services    Tropical Shipping's parent company, Birdsall Inc., will acquire the assets of V.I. Cargo Services Inc. for an undisclosed sum.
   Tropical and Birdsall are subsidiaries of Illinois-based natural gas utility Nicor.
   V.I. Cargo is the leading non-vessel-operating common carrier serving the island of St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands, the sole market it has served since 1993.
   Tropical said V.I. Cargo has built a “strong and loyal customer base in the less-than-containerload and full-containerload consolidation segment of the market.”
   V.I. Cargo will remain headquartered in St. Croix and will operate as a separate brand. Don Ebner will remain president of V.I. Cargo.
   “St. Croix is a key market for Tropical and one with excellent potential for LCL growth. While the acquisition is small in relation to our total volumes, the V.I. Cargo addition not only expands the quality and capabilities of our service offerings, but also adds local LCL management in a market that is important to our long-term success,” said Mike Pellicci, vice president and chief financial officer of Tropical Shipping.