Panalpina acquires Grampian International Freight
02 July 2004
BASEL, Switzerland, July 2, 2004 – Effective April 1, 2004, Panalpina, one of the world’s leading forwarding and logistics services providers, has taken over the Scottish freight forwarder Grampian International Freight Ltd, headquartered in Aberdeen with operations in England and the Netherlands. The acquisition enables Panalpina to extend its market position in the Oil & Gas business, one of Panalpina’s core industry verticals.
Grampian International Freight Ltd. (GIF), established in 1984, specializes in providing transportation and logistics solutions to the Oil & Gas industry. Their main focus is the United Kingdom, continental Europe as well as the traditional Oil & Gas markets in Africa, Central Asia, the Americas and the Far East. Grampian is considered one of the market leaders in the Oil & Gas sector and achieved a turnover exceeding GBP 27m in 2003 (CHF 61m).
Graham Thom, one of the founders of Grampian and currently its Managing Director will continue to assume management responsibilities for the Grampian Group under the new ownership structure. William Lamb, co-owner, will act for Panalpina in a consultative role after takeover. With its 150 staff, Grampian will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of Panalpina United Kingdom and will maintain its company name and brand. Both parties agreed not to disclose the purchase price.
“Grampian’s activities and its dedicated distribution concepts will ideally complement our respective services in Europe and will develop our market share both within Europe, as well as in West Africa and the emerging markets in Central Asia and North Africa”, explained Bruno Sidler, Panalpina’s CEO. On a global level, Aberdeen is considered to be the second most important location for operators and contractors in the Oil & Gas industry. “A reinforced presence of Panalpina in Europe will strengthen our global market position in this strategic business segment”.
Graham Thom commented: “I’m extremely positive about this acquisition
Graham Thom commented: “I’m extremely positive about this acquisition and cooperation. Panalpina’s international network and broad expertise in the forwarding and logistics sector will provide important benefits and opportunities to our customers, especially in the Oil & Gas industry. We’ll be able to make optimal use of synergies for our customers through this integration.”
