Danish shipping and logistics group DFDS has acquired Turkey’s largest operator of Ro-Ro freight ships, U.N. Ro-Ro.
U.N. Ro-Ro operates five routes connecting Italy and France with Turkey, 12 ships and port terminals in Trieste and in Pendik, Istanbul. The company employs 500 people. The deal is subject to approval by the authorities.
DFDS Shipping Network
DFDS is to acquire 98.8 per cent of the shares from Turkish private equity companies Actera and Esas for EUR 950 million. Currently, the DFDS shipping network covers the Baltic Sea, the North Sea and the English Channel. In the Mediterranean, DFDS operates a route between France and Tunisia.
U.N. Ro-Ro Routes and Ships
U.N. Ro-Ro operates five major routes between Turkey and the EU, connecting the Turkish ports of Pendik, Ambarli and Mersin with Trieste and Bari in Italy, Toulon in France and Patras in Greece. The company operates and owns a fleet of 12 large Ro-Ro ships and operates port terminals in Pendik, Istanbul, and Trieste in Italy. In cooperation with rail operators, U.N. Ro-Ro also offers intermodal transport between key EU markets and the ports.
Similar Operations and Ships
"The operation of Ro-Ro ships and operation of port terminals handling a high number of unaccompanied trailer units – and containers for reloading to rail transport in the ports – are very similar to DFDS' business in the North Sea. So are the goods transported – machinery, automotive parts, vehicles, electronics, computers, plastic products, textiles, clothing, food, fruit, beverages and other,' says Niels Smedegaard, CEO & President of DFDS A/S. DFDS is even familiar with the ships as they were all built at the Flensburg Shipyard in Germany where DFDS has also been building efficient ships of a similar modern design.
