Allcargo Logistics Friday announced that its wholly owned subsidiary ECU Worldwide, a multi-modal logistics major, has acquired the business of Swedish logistics company Nordicon Group.
A senior executive said the company has dropped its plans to bid for Container Corp of India.
ECU Worldwide will float a joint venture company wherein it will own 65% while Nordicon will own the rest. The company has valued Nordicon at about $44 million, said Ravi Jakhar, chief strategy officer at Allcargo.
“With this strategic investment, ECU Worldwide will now be a market leader with anear 40% market share of the less-than-container-load (LCL) business in the Nordic region,” said a statement.
This agreement expands ECU Worldwide’s service network and global reach further, adding new geography and a specialized rail freight consolidation service to expand further across Europe.
Shashi Kiran Shetty, Chairman, Allcargo Logistics, ECU Worldwide, and Gati Ltd., said, “The partnership with Nordicon is in line with our vision of consolidating our market leadership and working with entrepreneurial teams to expand into new territories who share our vision for digital innovation for the logistics sector,” said Shashi Kiran Shetty, chairman, Allcargo.
This is the 13th major investment for the company, which has interests in global freight forwarding, container freight stations, third-party logistics and warehouses. Most recently, it entered express logistics by acquiring a majority stake in Gati.
In a recent interview, Shetty had said Allcargo was planning to bid for Concor and was in advanced discussions with a foreign partner for the bid. He had called Concor a natural fit to the Allcargo business. The government is planning to sell 30% in the company.
On Friday Jakhar said those plans have been dropped and Allcargo will continue to strengthen its existing businesses.
I just wanted to say a big thank you to Mark, Debbie and your teams for the great service we have received from ECU Worldwide. Your willingness and availability at all times are highly appreciated to achieve the service we get from yourselves.
- Allport Cargo ServicesOver a period of many years, Diamond Global Logistics have chosen to place business with ECU Worldwide UK. The service given to us by Ian, mark and their colleagues has been exemplary. In our view, ECU have set standards in customer service that other companies can only dream of. We are approached on a frequent basis by ECU’s competitors but no matter what they claim to be able to offer us, we are never convinced as to their abilities to attain the high standards that we seek in our service providers. In these days of rates being seen to be the all-important factor, with service often being an afterthought by many, ECU are a breath of fresh air in the marketplace. The relationship Diamond Global Logistics has with ECU is one that we place great value upon.
- Diamond Global Logistics
