APM Terminals divests Zeebrugge share

APM Terminals and Hong Kong-based COSCO SHIPPING

Ports Limited (“COSCO SHIPPING Ports”), a subsidiary of China COSCO Shipping

Corporation Limited (“COSCO SHIPPING”), have reached an agreement on the key terms

of the proposed sale of APM Terminals’ 76% majority shareholding in the existing APM

Terminals Zeebrugge container terminal to COSCO SHIPPING Ports for EUR 35 million,

subject to adjustments and fulfillment of conditions precedent. The transaction is

expected to close by the end of November 2017. The acquisition will bring COSCO

SHIPPING Ports’ shareholding in the 1 million TEU annual capacity terminal in Belgium’s

second-busiest container port to 100%.

As part of the transaction, APM Terminals has proposed to buy back 25% of the Shanghai

International Port Group (“SIPG”) shares and will then sell them together with APM

Terminals’ own 51% stake in Zeebrugge to COSCO SHIPPING Ports. Further details of the

transaction have not been disclosed which is subject to customary regulatory approvals –

expected to take three to four months for completion.

APM Terminals opened the Zeebrugge terminal in October 2006 and later sold a 24% share

to COSCO SHIPPING Ports in 2014. COSCO SHIPPING and its alliance partners have

become the major customers of the port with a long term interest to grow port volumes.

“Our decision to divest Zeebrugge reflects our portfolio strategy to focus on long term core

assets. We believe COSCO SHIPPING Ports is the right long-term owner of the Zeebrugge

facility and will continue to grow the port for customers, employees and the Zeebrugge

stakeholder community,” stated Wim Lagaay, Head of APM Terminals USA and Europe

Portfolio, based in The Hague, Netherlands.

COSCO SHIPPING operates the world’s largest shipping fleet by tonnage. COSCO SHIPPING

Ports is a co-shareholder and strategic partner in several operations within the APM

Terminals global terminal network, including the Suez Canal Container Terminal, in Egypt,

and Qingdao Qianwan Container Terminal (QQCT) and Guangzhou South China Oceangate

Container Terminal (GOCT) in China. In October 2016, COSCO SHIPPING Ports acquired a

40% share in the deep-water APM Terminals Vado terminal project under construction in

Vado, Italy.

SIPG operates the world’s largest container port in Shanghai, with over 37 million TEU

throughput in 2016. APM Terminals will continue to work with SIPG and actively seek new

partnership opportunities.

Source: APM, 12 September 2017