Maritime services subsidiary of Mediterranean Shipping Company, SAS Shipping Agencies Services, has agreed to acquire a 56.47% stake in the Brazilian port operator Wilson Sons for a total cash consideration of 4.3 billion Brazilian real (R13.44bn).
In a regulatory filing, Wilson Sons confirmed that it had received a communication from its controlling shareholder, OW Overseas Investments, regarding the execution of a share purchase agreement.
The agreement is between OW Overseas (the seller) and SAS Shipping Agencies Services Sàrl (the buyer), with Ocean Wilsons Holdings (the seller’s ultimate parent company) acting as guarantor. The deal involves the sale of all 248 664 000 common shares held by the seller, which represent 56.47% of Wilson Sons' total and voting capital.
The filing further disclosed that following the agreement, the seller had agreed to sell its controlling shares to the buyer for a total cash consideration of R$4.352bn. This unadjusted purchase price values each share at R$17.50.
The transaction is expected to be completed in the second half of 2025. Once the deal is finalised, SAS Shipping will launch a public tender offer, in compliance with applicable laws, for the remaining shares, at the same price and terms offered to the seller.
Wilson Sons also reported strong financial performance, with a 15% increase in revenue to $262m (£210m) for the first half of 2024. Ebitda rose by 12% to $111m (£89m). Notably, container terminal Ebitda surged by 47%, driven by significant growth in transhipment and gateway volumes, higher revenues from ancillary services, and fixed cost dilution. Aggregate volumes grew by 25%, reaching an all-time high, thanks to exceptional performance across both terminals.
For the first three quarters of 2024, container terminals reported a 30% increase in volume to 360 900 TEUs, with a 22% rise over nine months to 972 700 TEUs.
This acquisition marks a significant development in the global port operations sector, enhancing MSC’s position in the South American market.
