Hapag-Lloyd to Make $1 Billion Acquisition in South America

Hapag-Lloyd AG and SM SAAM S.A. signed a binding agreement under which Hapag-Lloyd will acquire 100% of the shares of SAAM Ports S.A. and SAAM Logistics S.A. and thereby the entire company’s terminal business and associated logistics services.

The contracting parties agreed upon a price of around $1 billion, which also includes real estate assets related to the logistics business.

Chile-based SM SAAM is a terminal operator, logistics company and towage provider active in multiple countries in the Americas. It was founded in 1960 and has been listed on the Santiago Stock Exchange (SSE) since 2012.

SM SAAM’s terminal business participations comprise 10 terminals in six North, Central and South American countries with around 4,000 employees and a combined container throughput of around 3.5 million TEU in 2021.

The related logistics services complement the terminal business at five locations in Chile, with together around 300 employees. SM SAAM’s tugboat services and airport logistics services businesses are not part of the transaction and will remain with SM SAAM.

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Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd said: “Investing in terminal infrastructure is a key element of our strategic agenda, and Latin America is one of our stronghold markets.

"Acquiring SM SAAM’s terminal operations and complementary logistics services will help us to further strengthen our business while building up a robust and attractive terminal portfolio.”

In driving its Strategy 2023, Hapag-Lloyd has continuously expanded its involvement in the terminal sector, most recently by announcing that it aims to acquire a minority stake in the Italy-based Spinelli Group, by acquiring a stake in JadeWeserPort in Wilhelmshaven.

It is also investing in the construction of Terminal 2 in the Egyptian port of Damietta. Further, Hapag-Lloyd has a stake in the Container Terminal Altenwerder in Hamburg and in Terminal TC3 of the Moroccan port of Tangier.

The closing of the transaction is subject to approval by the relevant antitrust authorities and to additional conditions customary for a transaction of this kind.

Read More: Hapag-Lloyd Acquires Minority Share in Italy-based Spinelli Group