Bolloré sells its logistics activities in Africa to the shipowner MSC
Bolloré group logo.
(Drawing).
BERTRAND GUAY / AFP
Text by: RFI Follow
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The Bolloré group, leader in transport and logistics on the African continent, announced that it had reached an agreement with the Italian-Swiss shipowner MSC (Mediterranean Shipping Company) this Thursday, March 31.
The amount of the sale amounts to 5.7 billion euros.
This sale concerns a large network of port concessions, warehouses and road and rail hubs in Africa.
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The network of the Bolloré Africa Logistics group is very extensive.
It is present in more than 20 countries on the continent and manages container terminals from Abidjan in Côte d'Ivoire to Pointe-Noire in Congo-Brazzaville via Douala in Cameroon.
The group employs 20,000 people and has also seen its revenues jump by 8% in 2021 to reach 2.2 billion euros.
This announcement of sale comes at the very
end of the period of exclusive negotiations
planned between the Bolloré group and MSC.
The exclusivity granted to the Italian-Swiss group, a global container transport giant, put aside other potential buyers until March 31, when the sale agreement was announced.
Why sell?
It should be noted that this sale will only be finalized in the summer of 2023 and that it is subject to obtaining certain authorizations, in particular that of the French competition authority, an independent body which ensures compliance with procurement .
But also and above all the authorization of the countries where the group's infrastructures are located.
The group is very successful, but it is faced with increasingly costly investments and growing competition from Chinese operators.
And this sale is also imbued with a scent of scandal;
the Bolloré group is at the heart of a
corruption case in Togo
and Guinea for which the group has agreed to pay a fine of 12 million euros to the French courts.
The Bolloré group has also indicated that it will retain some of its activities on the African continent, particularly through investments in communication, entertainment and even publishing.
It's done and official!
The #Bolloré group has sold its logistics branch in Africa for €5.7 billion pic.twitter.com/KC3OwdO4fQ
— Bolloré / Vivendi / UMG shares... (@jourlepluslong) March 31, 2022
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