Logistics and shipping company Chelsea Logistics Holdings Corp. unveiled a plan to invest P5 billion in a medium-sized shipyard in Luzon as a part of its expansion strategy.
CLC president Chryss Alfonsus Damuy said in a recent investors briefing the group was in talks to acquire a shipping and logistics company and was interested in operating ports and shipyard facilities.
Damuy said CLC was looking at a shipyard in Subic or Batanagas. He said the company would likely team up with existing shipyard operators either from Japan or Korea with expertise in operating and managing such facilities.
Damuy said managing a shipyard would be a very good business because only a few companies were engaged in the sector. These companies post 20-percent to 30-percent margin as they provide not only services but also the materials for replacement.
He said operating its own shipyard would be a cost-saving measure for Chelsea which would spend P1.5 billion in annual dry-dock costs.
“We really need a shipyard given our fleet expansion,” Damuy said.
CLC said it would allot P1.78 billion of the P5.8-billion expected proceeds from the planned initial public offering to fund fleet expansion, including the acquisition of a medium-range tanker with a estimated cost of $35 million to $50 million.
The company plans to acquire the tanker, with up to 55,000 DWT capacity carrying 55 million liters of bunker fuel in September.
CLC’s unit Trans-Asia Shipping also plans to acquire two carl vessels that will provide additional capacity of 1,000 TEUs (twenty equivalent units). CLC is also in the process of conducting due diligence on two shipping companies.
It is also looking to spend P2.2 billion to increase its stake in 2Go Group Inc. by buying the remaining 20-percent shares in KGLI-NM Holdings Corp. held by the former management of Negros Navigation led by 2Go president Sulficio Tagud.
The planned acquisition, if approved by the Philippine Competition Commission, could increase Uy’s direct ownership in 2Go to 35.3 percent from the current 28.1 percent.
