APM Terminals has concluded an agreement with China COSCO Shipping Ports for the sale of a minority share in a new joint venture created for the APM Terminals Global Terminal Network’s operations in Vado, Italy.
A similar agreement has been completed with Qingdao Port International Development Co Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Qingdao Port International Co Ltd, which shall become an indirect minority shareholder in the joint venture.
The agreements include interests in both the existing Reefer Terminal in Vado and the new 800,000 teu capacity deep-water terminal currently under construction at the Port of Vado.
APM Terminals will have a 50.1% share and will operate both the Reefer Terminal and the APM Terminals Vado container terminal, COSCO Shipping Ports will have a 40% share and Qingdao Port International Development Co Limited a 9.9% share.
COSCO Shipping Ports is a subsidiary of COSCO Shipping Group which assumed control over the Greek Port of Piraeus earlier this year. It has been expanding its operations in the Mediterranean Region as part of the “One Belt One Road” initiative to strengthen logistics links between China and Europe.
COSCO is already a shareholder in several operations within the APM Terminals Global Terminal Network, including the Qingdao Qianwan ContainerTerminal (QQCT) in China.
APM Terminals and the Qingdao Port Group, which has also been expanding its global presence, have existing joint venture relationships with shared investments in QQCT and four other container terminals in Qingdao, and most recently, Qingdao Port Dongjiakou Multi-Purpose Terminal.
