Tropical Shipping Acquires Virgin Island NVOCC

Tropical Shipping, a subsidiary of Birdsall, acquired V.I. Cargo Services, a non-vessel operating common carrier serving the island of St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands, the sole market it has served since 1993.

Nicor, which owns Birdsall, announced the acquisition Monday but did not reveal financial details. It said V.I. Cargo, which specializes in the less-than-container load and full-container load consolidation segment of the market, will remain headquartered in St. Croix and will operate as a separate brand. Don Ebner, President of V.I. Cargo, will remain in his current position.

“St. Croix is a key market for Tropical and one with excellent potential for LCL growth,” said Mike Pellicci, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Tropical Shipping. “While the acquisition is small in relation to our total volumes, the V.I. Cargo addition not only expands the quality and capabilities of our service offerings, but also adds local LCL management in a market that is important to our long-term success.”

By The Numbers: U.S. Trade.

Birdsall has expanded its logistic operations in the Caribbean in recent years. It acquired Florida freight forwarder Deluxe Freight in 2009 and Caribbean NVOCC Caribtrans in 2008.

-- Contact Peter T. Leach at pleach@joc.com.