Stena Line is widening its footprint outside its northern European home market, buying a 49% stake in a Moroccan ferry company.
The Gothenburg-based company announced on Monday that it is acquiring the stake in Africa Morocco Link (AML), which operates a ferry route between Tanger Med in Morocco and Algeciras in Spain.
In a separate statement in Athens, Greek ferry company Attica Group confirmed it is the seller of the stake in a €49m ($53.2m) deal that includes two vessels already operating on that route. They are the 16,071-gt Morocco Star (built 1980) and 2,926-gt Highspeed 3 (built 2000).
Attica Group co-founded AML in 2016 alongside the Bank of Africa, one of Morocco’s largest lenders.
Athens-listed Attica Group said it will book a net gain of €21m from flipping its stake to Stena Line.
The agreement is still subject to regulatory approval in Morocco.
Stena Line, one of Europe’s largest ferry firms with 38 ships servicing 6.5m passengers in the Baltic, North Sea, Irish Sea and English Channel, said the new business will help it become a stronger company.
“We are always looking to secure new business opportunities that will make us last and be resilient in the long run,” said chief executive Niclas Martensson.
Alongside its existing line between Tanger Med and Algeciras, which serves freight and passengers, AML will launch a high-speed route in the summer between Tangier Ville and Tarifa in Spain for passengers and cars.
“The Strait of Gibraltar is a strategic location for passengers travelling between Africa and Europe, as well as for global trade, and freight volumes in the area are expected to grow in the upcoming years due to the positive industrial growth and international trade in Morocco,” Martensson said.
As for Attica, the sale comes amid a re-organisation and fleet renewal in which it posted its biggest annual profit in 16 years on Friday. Attica is 86.7%-owned by entrepreneur Mubashir Mukadam’s Strix Holdings.
