22-Dec-2008

[December 22, 2008 – Hong Kong and Tokyo, Japan] – Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) have signed a share-swapping agreement through which HPH will become the majority shareholder of Amsterdam-based Ceres Container Terminals Europe B.V. (CTE) in the Netherlands. In exchange for the majority stake in CTE, NYK will have a minority stake in Europe Container Terminals (ECT) in Rotterdam.

Commenting on the agreement, John Meredith, Group Managing Director of HPH, said, “The investment in CTE will help strengthen HPH’s presence in Northern Europe through the addition of extra container-handling capacity. CTE’s strategic location allows it to attract deep-sea and feeder traffic as well as inland traffic.”

Takao Kusakari, Chairman of NYK said, “This agreement gives us the opportunity to enhance our cooperation with HPH while further tapping into HPH’s network of Northern European ports.”

CTE is a holding company of two wholly owned subsidiaries, Ceres Paragon Terminals (CPT) and Ceres Amsterdam Marine Terminals (CAMT). CPT is made up of three berths – one 400-by-57-metre indented berth and two conventional berths with a combined length of 615 metres and a depth alongside of 15 metres. CPT also has an excellent on-dock rail facility with three 700-metre-long tracks that reach out towards the edge of the quay deck for the fast and efficient handling of containers. CAMT is a Ro-Ro terminal that performs stevedoring activities for automobile carriers and has a number of warehouses for the storage of cocoa.

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