Hutchison to acquire majority stake in Barcelona container terminal

Hutchison to acquire majority stake in Barcelona container terminal    Hong Kong-based port operator Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) has signed a conditional agreement with Spanish stevedore Grupo Mestre to acquire a majority stake in Terminal Catalunya S.A. (TERCAT), a container terminal in the port of Barcelona. Financial details were not disclosed.
   “We are pleased to team up with Grupo Mestre to jointly develop TERCAT in the Port of Barcelona, a major entry point to the Iberian Peninsular that is experiencing steady trade growth,” said John Meredith, group managing director of HPH.
   HPH said the port of Barcelona handles 40 percent of Spain’s domestic container trade.
   HPH is the world’s largest port operator with 242 berths in 41 ports, handling 47.8 million TEUs in 2004.