Rederi TransAtlantic buys Merlinja assets

OCTOBER 19, 2012 — Heléne Mellquist, the recently appointed CEO of the Industrial Shipping Division of Sweden’s Rederi AB TransAtlantic is “very excited” that TransAtlantic has acquired the customer base of Finnish shipping company Merilinja.

TransAtlantic has acquired Merlinja’s operations in an asset deal under which it has purchased substantially all of Merilinja’s assets, including its customer contacts, and assumed Merilinja’s chartered-in vessels. Included in Merilinja’s assets are its customer contracts.

Merilinja offers feeder services within container shipping between Finland (Kokkola and Oulu) and Antwerp with revenues of approximately SEK 100 million per year.

Ms. Mellquist says the deal gives TransAtlantic a unique opportunity to improve its competitiveness between northern Finland and Belgium. “We should also be able to grow this business based on the improved competitive position,” she says.