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Jun 18, 2015 (newstodate): After a prolonged period of silence, the words are now out: the take-over by Swissport of the SAS Group's ground handling company SGH is not to be realized.
-In Scandinavia, market conditions for ground handling have changed, thereby creating new possibilities for SAS. A letter of intent was signed with Wideroe for the outsourcing of all line stations in Norway. SAS has decided not to complete the transaction with Swissport, since the right financial conditions were not in place and, instead, discussions are ongoing with other parties, reads today's release from SAS as it publishes its Interim Report Q2, 2015.
The decision to outsource handling at all Norwegian stations may indicate that SAS is instead to pursue a strategy of splitting up today's SGH into separate parts that may then be sold to "other parties", while SAS may decide to keep its own handling at the Scandinavian hubs.
As one example of this strategy, SGH's GSE business in Norway and Sweden was sold to the Belgian TCR Group earlier in 2015, and SGH and TCR are now close to an agreement on a similar take-over of the GSE business in Denmark with some 50 employees as well, expected to be completed by this summer as earlier reported by newstodate.
In March 2013, SAS and Swissport signed a LoI paving the way for continued negotiations between SAS and Swissport for a complete outsourcing of SAS ground and cargo handling services in Scandinavia.
This was later followed by Swissport's modest 10 percent stake in SGH announced on November 1, 2013, after which date little, or rather nothing, has been said about the status of the process.
Swissport next pulled out from cargo handling at Copenhagen Airport from October 1, 2014, and while its business was eventually acquired by WFS, Swissport first approached its negotiation partner, SGH. To no avail.
-The business was indeed offered to SGH that decided, however, not to buy it, Sabine Fernandez Meinitz, Swissport International Ltd, told newstodate at the time.
Swissport still holds 10 percent of the shares in SGH.
-In Scandinavia, market conditions for ground handling have changed, thereby creating new possibilities for SAS. A letter of intent was signed with Wideroe for the outsourcing of all line stations in Norway. SAS has decided not to complete the transaction with Swissport, since the right financial conditions were not in place and, instead, discussions are ongoing with other parties, reads today's release from SAS as it publishes its Interim Report Q2, 2015.
The decision to outsource handling at all Norwegian stations may indicate that SAS is instead to pursue a strategy of splitting up today's SGH into separate parts that may then be sold to "other parties", while SAS may decide to keep its own handling at the Scandinavian hubs.
As one example of this strategy, SGH's GSE business in Norway and Sweden was sold to the Belgian TCR Group earlier in 2015, and SGH and TCR are now close to an agreement on a similar take-over of the GSE business in Denmark with some 50 employees as well, expected to be completed by this summer as earlier reported by newstodate.
In March 2013, SAS and Swissport signed a LoI paving the way for continued negotiations between SAS and Swissport for a complete outsourcing of SAS ground and cargo handling services in Scandinavia.
This was later followed by Swissport's modest 10 percent stake in SGH announced on November 1, 2013, after which date little, or rather nothing, has been said about the status of the process.
Swissport next pulled out from cargo handling at Copenhagen Airport from October 1, 2014, and while its business was eventually acquired by WFS, Swissport first approached its negotiation partner, SGH. To no avail.
-The business was indeed offered to SGH that decided, however, not to buy it, Sabine Fernandez Meinitz, Swissport International Ltd, told newstodate at the time.
Swissport still holds 10 percent of the shares in SGH.