Hapag-Lloyd Hits USD 414 Mn Target with Capital Increase

German carrier Hapag-Lloyd has raised EUR 352 million (approx. USD 414 million) in gross proceeds from its capital increase scheme, the company informed.

The capital increase, announced in September, saw 96.5 percent of the existing shareholders exercise their subscription rights. The move was agreed upon as part of the merger of Hapag-Lloyd and UASC.

A total of 11,717,353 new no-par value shares were placed at a subscription price of EUR 30.00 each. As a result, the company’s share capital will be increased to EUR 175.7 million.

Hapag-Lloyd said it would use the proceeds primarily for the repayment of debts as well as for general corporate purposes.

 “We are pleased with the high level of demand for our shares,” said Rolf Habben Jansen, CEO of Hapag-Lloyd AG.

“We would like to thank all our shareholders for their confidence. We see this as an encouragement to continue to rigorously pursue our strategic and operative objectives.”

The capital increase was backstopped by Hapag-Lloyd’s main shareholders CSAV Germany Container Holding GmbH, Kuehne Maritime GmbH, Qatar Holding Germany GmbH and The Public Investment Fund of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The main shareholders have committed to purchase any new shares that have not been subscribed for in the subscription offer at the subscription price, the company said.

Earlier this month, CSAV revealed plans to up its stake in Hapag-Lloyd to at least 25 percent.

When contacted by World Maritime News for a comment on potential changes to the shareholders’ structure of the company, a Hapag-Lloyd spokesperson said that the exact numbers were expected to be known in a few days.

Current Hapag-Lloyd’s shareholder structure comprises CSAV (22.6%), Kühne (17.6%), the City of Hamburg (14.9%), Qatar Investment Authority (14.4%) and the Public Investment Fund on behalf of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (10.1%).