W&W signs MOU with HMM to purchase car carrier division

Wilh. Wilhelmsen ASA (Norway) and Wallenius Lines AB., (Sweden) have jointly signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Korean company Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) for the possible acquisition of the car carrier division of HMM which would continue to be operated as a separate company with its Korean profile.

It should be emphasized that the Memorandum of Understanding sets out the intentions of the parties, and that a formal sale and purchase agreement has not yet been entered into. It would therefore not be appropriate to comment on speculation as to any specific terms of the agreement.

The parties are, however, committed to negotiate on an exclusive basis in order to reach an agreement as to all unresolved matters.

Hyundai Merchant Marine is the leading operator in Korea in the specialized field of transporting passenger cars on deep sea vessels. The company operators a total fleet of approximately 70 PCTC’s (Pure Car and Truck Carriers) and PCC’s (Pure Car Carriers) carrying passenger cars principally manufactured by Hyundai Motor and Kia Motor from locations in Korea to destinations worldwide.

Wilh.Wilhelmsen ASA and Wallenius Lines AB established their joint venture company, Wallenius Wilhelmsen Lines, in 1999, which today operates a fleet of about 60 specialized ro-ro and car carriers, making the company one of the world’s leading operators within this field of transportation.