Maersk no longer wants rail subsidiary Schenker
The German Railways (Deutsche Bahn) aim to find a buyer for Schenker this year in order to focus more on its core railway business. Four potential suitors have emerged, one of whom is now out of the race: the Danish shipping company Maersk.
Maersk will no longer bid for the international logistics company Schenker of the German Railways. "Schenker is an interesting company," explained Maersk CEO Vincent Clerc. However, a closer look revealed many challenges in integrating Schenker into the company. "We have concluded that buying Schenker now is not the right thing to do at this time."
Maersk's stocks rose by six percent at the stock exchange following this announcement. The stocks of the Danish logistics company DSV, which also bids for Schenker, increased by five percent.
The German Railways aim to find a buyer for Schenker this year. Recently, insiders had been in talks with four potential buyers, including Maersk. Therefore, the remaining bidders are DSV, a financial investor group led by CVC, and the Saudi consortium Bahri. The bids reportedly range from under 15 billion Euros to significantly more. Insiders expect a final bid from the companies in July. A purchase by Maersk would have been expensive for Moeller-Maersk in any case, and some observers were skeptical about the financial logic of the purchase.
The Bahn aims to sell Schenker to focus on the core railway business in Germany and reduce its debt of around 34 billion Euros. This is important to prevent Schenker from suffering any losses in creditworthiness, which could lead to increasing interest payments on the debts.
Maersk's decision to withdraw from the bid for Schenker could significantly impact the ongoing negotiations with the other potential buyers, such as DSV, CVC, and Bahri. TheLogistics sector, particularly in Europe, might be affected by the final buyer of Schenker, as the new owner could potentially shape the industry's future strategies.
