Containerships Acquires Contaz

LONDON -- Containerships, Finland’s leading regional short sea container line, acquired Contaz Maritime of Turkey, thus becoming a pan-European operator.

The Helsinki-based carrier did not reveal how much it paid for Contaz, but said the deal, announced March 3, was fully financed by its equity.

The acquisition comes at a time when many short sea carriers are retrenching. It will expand Containerships’ network from the Baltic and North Sea to the Mediterranean and North Africa.

“The Contaz operations are not only profitable but in fact a mirror image of the services Containerships operate in the Baltic and North Sea,” said Containerships CEO Sigurjon Markusson.

The combined carrier will have 400 employees and 15 ships, including 10 Containership vessels ranging from 500 TEUs to 1,000 TEUs.

The carrier will offer door-to-door services between Turkey, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Tunisia and Libya in the South and the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, Finland, Russia, the Baltic States and Poland in the North, Markusson said.

The two services also have the potential to cover Ukraine, Belarus and Central Asia, he said.