INCHAPE PLANS GROWTH IN AGENCY ACTIVITIES

INCHAPE PLANS GROWTH IN AGENCY ACTIVITIES    Inchcape Shipping Services, the international shipping agency company, said that it will double the size of its core port agency business by 2005. The company also aims to double its earnings before interest, tax and depreciation.
   Inchcape Shipping Services had earnings before interest, tax and depreciation of $23 million on revenue of $200 million in 2002, and currently handles about 40,000 vessels a year worldwide.
   The company is owned by the venture capital firm Electra Partners,
   “Our investment rationale was based on Inchcape Shipping Services’ position as a global services company which is market leader in a highly fragmented market, which is overdue for consolidation,” said Nigel McConnell, managing director of Electra Partners.
   Inchcape Shipping Services said that it will announce a new web-based marine management service, developed in partnership with clients and managed centrally in the U.K.
   This service will make the whole process paperless, with voyage data, cargo data and costs accessible electronically at all times, the company said. Shipowners will benefit from transparency of accounts with their chosen ship agent and cost savings.
   Simon Morse, chief executive of Inchcape Shipping Service, said that the company will extend the scope of its services “from the port to the voyage,” using information technology.