TUI sells its shares in Hapag Lloyd

    TUI has reached an agreement with Albert Ballin (ABC) that will see its shareholding in Hapag-Lloyd reduced to 22% after June 2012, down from current 38.4%.

    ABC will then control more than three quarters   of the carrier, which will thus remain firmly in German hands. As part of the agreement, both TUI and the consortium will first substitute hybrid capital provided to Hapag-Lloyd into equity, as a result of which TUI’s ownership will temporarily rise (by 1.1%) to 39.5% before the deal is completed by June (2012).

    Thereafter, TUI will have the right of priority placement of its remaining shares in an IPO, for which it may call, or to sell them otherwise (to any third party inside or outside of Germany). In April Hapag-Lloyd must offer to buy back shares from TUI at EUR 37.5 million (USD 50 million). With 36.9%, the City of Hamburg (this time spending EUR 420 million) will, through ABC, become the larger shareholder, while Kuhne Holding’s participation will increase to 28.2%. The total deal is worth EUR 700 million (USD 920 million) to TUI, which would value Hapag-Lloyd’s current worth at some USD 5.6 billion.