Turkish private-equity firms Esas Holding AS and Actera Partners LP agreed to buy the local ferry business U.N. Ro-Ro from KKR & Co, after Danish ferry operator DFDS group pulled out from the bidding race.
U.N. Ro-Ro, bought by KKR in 2007, has experienced business growth in both sales and number of sailings, according to its latest data records.
The ferry business covers a strategically important route in the Mediterranean, linking Turkey with Trieste, Italy, on the northern Adriatic and the southern French port of Toulon, allowing truck drivers to cut time and money by circumventing the mountainous Balkan region.
The acquisition deal is subject to antitrust clearance from the Ankara-based competition board, according to the sources close to the matter.
[mappress] World Maritime News Staff, August 6, 2014