DUBAI, 10 December 2004 — Dubai Ports International (DPI), a leading world port operator, said yesterday it had acquired the international terminal business of CSX World Terminals (CSXWT) for $1.15 billion.
The Dubai Ports Authority (DPA) subsidiary signed the definitive agreement with CSX Corporation, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and owns the largest rail freight network in the eastern United States. The transaction will be financed from a committed facility arranged and underwritten by Deutsche Bank and will be completed in the first quarter of 2005.
Simon Moore, DPI’s director of project development, said the acquisition marked a major step in the company’s global expansion strategy, adding that it also gives DPI the opportunity to build on new and existing partnerships. The acquisition of CSXWT ranks Dubai Ports among the top six global port operators and should give it access to new growth markets. CSXWT is a leading container terminal developer and operator, whose parent company was once headed by US Treasury Secretary John Snow.
The US firm has a 25 percent interest in and will be the operator of Korea’s Pusan Newport, a nine berth facility with a capacity of 5.5 million twenty foot equivalent units (TEU) that is currently under development and will start operations in 2006.
The TEU is the standard unit for counting containers of various capacities and for describing the capacities of container ships or terminals. Pusan Newport is the “largest terminal asset we are acquiring,” DPI’s Moore told a press conference. It also adds nine terminals with 24 berths and a combined future capacity of 14.6 million TEUs, and gives DPI a “unique portfolio of assets located in high growth markets,” he said. “We very much want to participate on the global stage,” said Moore. “We are an integral part of Dubai’s success story,” he added. The transaction “will be another important step in our continuing efforts to focus on the North American railroad business,” said Michael Ward, CSX Corporation chairman. “The acquisition of CSX World Terminals will be a strong strategic fit for DPI, bridging our terminal network between east and west,” DPI Managing Director Mohammed Sharaf said.
