TUI AG would prefer to sell its Hapag-Lloyd container shipping unit and is drawing up marketing documents for the divestment, Chief Executive Michael Frenzel said on Wednesday.
"The preparation to separate the TUI Group's shipping division is progressing according to plan," Frenzel said in a speech to be delivered at the company's annual meeting later on Wednesday.
"We do not rule out any of the potential options, although our clear preference is a divestment solution," he said, adding that a preliminary decision had not been taken regarding potential buyers.
He said a merger would be too time consuming and a spin-off would be a long-winded option requiring "the group to be completely refinanced, a condition hardly perceived as possible at appropriate terms and conditions under current market conditions."
TUI owns a 51 percent stake in TUI Travel , Europe's biggest tourism firm, and owns Hapag-Lloyd, the world's fifth-largest container shipping firm that some analysts say could fetch around 4.6 billion euros ($7.12 billion) if sold.
He said the nationality of the buyer would not matter.
Some shareholders have said in recent weeks that Frenzel would orchestrate a deal to please politicans rather than shareholders.
"What matters is not the nationality of the buyer but the question as to whether the buyer has the necessary know-how and the financial resources to ensure a successful further development of Hapag-Lloyd," Frenzel added. "This is the only way to secure jobs and sites in the long run."
"The preparation to separate the TUI Group's shipping division is progressing according to plan," Frenzel said in a speech to be delivered at the company's annual meeting later on Wednesday.
"We do not rule out any of the potential options, although our clear preference is a divestment solution," he said, adding that a preliminary decision had not been taken regarding potential buyers.
He said a merger would be too time consuming and a spin-off would be a long-winded option requiring "the group to be completely refinanced, a condition hardly perceived as possible at appropriate terms and conditions under current market conditions."
TUI owns a 51 percent stake in TUI Travel , Europe's biggest tourism firm, and owns Hapag-Lloyd, the world's fifth-largest container shipping firm that some analysts say could fetch around 4.6 billion euros ($7.12 billion) if sold.
He said the nationality of the buyer would not matter.
Some shareholders have said in recent weeks that Frenzel would orchestrate a deal to please politicans rather than shareholders.
"What matters is not the nationality of the buyer but the question as to whether the buyer has the necessary know-how and the financial resources to ensure a successful further development of Hapag-Lloyd," Frenzel added. "This is the only way to secure jobs and sites in the long run."