APM Terminals won a 25-year concession to operate the container terminal at the port of Gothenburg, Sweden’s biggest container gateway, the Journal of Commerce reports.
APM said it will invest $115 million over the next five years, mostly on equipment, to make the Skandia Container terminal more competitive as the North European hub for the Nordic region. APM, a unit of Denmark’s A.P. Moller-Maersk, won the contract in a bidding battle with a dozen other firms, reportedly including close rival DP World.
“This is a big day not only for Gothenburg, but also for the whole of Swedish industry,” said Sven Hulterstrom, chairman of the Port of Gothenburg. "With APM Terminals’ global network and expertise and a willingness to invest, the Port of Gothenburg will consolidate its role as the major international port in Sweden.”
APM expects to close on the deal, which requires approval by the Swedish competition regulators, in the first quarter of 2012 when it will take over the management and operations of the terminal and its 450 employees.
The terminal concession is part of the port’s privatization program, which has already seen Danish ship-owner DFDS and its Belgian partner Cobelfret acquire a 25-year concession to operate the roll-on, roll-off terminal. Swedish logistics group Logent has a 10-year concession on the car terminal.
Gothenburg handled 880,000 20-foot equivalent container units in 2010, nearly 60 percent of Sweden’s total container traffic. Ro-ro traffic totaled 564,000 units and 233,000 new cars passed through the port. The port’s total goods traffic amounted to 43.8 million tons in 2010 while oil shipments totaled 22.7 million tons.
APM said it will invest $115 million over the next five years, mostly on equipment, to make the Skandia Container terminal more competitive as the North European hub for the Nordic region. APM, a unit of Denmark’s A.P. Moller-Maersk, won the contract in a bidding battle with a dozen other firms, reportedly including close rival DP World.
“This is a big day not only for Gothenburg, but also for the whole of Swedish industry,” said Sven Hulterstrom, chairman of the Port of Gothenburg. "With APM Terminals’ global network and expertise and a willingness to invest, the Port of Gothenburg will consolidate its role as the major international port in Sweden.”
APM expects to close on the deal, which requires approval by the Swedish competition regulators, in the first quarter of 2012 when it will take over the management and operations of the terminal and its 450 employees.
The terminal concession is part of the port’s privatization program, which has already seen Danish ship-owner DFDS and its Belgian partner Cobelfret acquire a 25-year concession to operate the roll-on, roll-off terminal. Swedish logistics group Logent has a 10-year concession on the car terminal.
Gothenburg handled 880,000 20-foot equivalent container units in 2010, nearly 60 percent of Sweden’s total container traffic. Ro-ro traffic totaled 564,000 units and 233,000 new cars passed through the port. The port’s total goods traffic amounted to 43.8 million tons in 2010 while oil shipments totaled 22.7 million tons.