South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries on Feb. 4 came to an agreement with Grand China Logistics, a subsidiary of China's Hainan Airlines Group (HNA Group), to establish a joint venture bulker owning/operating company in Hong Kong, according to a report by Xinhua News Agency.
While details of the envisaged joint company are still unclear, joint-venture partner Grand China Logistics currently has plans to procure more than 200 bulkers. Top executives of HNA Group and HHI entered into a cooperative agreement on Feb. 4. Both parties will cooperate with each other in the fields of logistics, finance, and strategic investments in the future. Grand China Logistics is a logistics subsidiary of the HNA Group. Its goal is to develop into a comprehensive logistics business, including land, sea, and air, and it hopes to have a fleet including 210 ships and 30 airplanes within the next five years. At the turn of 2008, it decided to acquire Tianjin Marine Shipping.
It has also been reported that Li Kelin, who worked for China Shipping Group up until 2007, is participating in the company as an advisor. HHI in 2007 established a joint venture LNG shipping company Nikorma Shipping Services Ltd. with Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) and other entities. The new bulker joint venture will be HHI's second shipping company. |
