Mediterranean Shipping Co. denied it is weighing plans to spin off its global container terminals unit in an initial public offering in Singapore, the Journal of Commerce reported.
Reuters IRF is reporting that the transaction, estimated at about $1 billion, is at an early stage and could also take the form of a business trust.
BNP Paribas, CLSA and Deutsche Bank have been mandated to manage the deal, according to IFR.
Lawrence Matthews, spokesman for the privately-held, Geneva-based carrier, said the report is untrue.
MSC’s ports business is held via a stake in Netherlands-based Terminals Investment, which claims a “unique” relationship with the world’s second largest ocean carrier. It handles around 15 million 20-foot equivalent units at 20 terminals in 16 countries, including facilities in Antwerp, Valencia and Bremerhaven.
MSC chairman Gianluigi Aponte has been quoted as being open to offers for a minority stake up to 49 percent in the non-core terminals business.
Most recently, Terminals Investment acquired a 50 percent stake in the company that controls the Medcenter Container Terminal in the southern Italian port of Gioia Tauro, where MSC is the biggest customer.