ABX Air has announced a move to significantly broaden both their airlift capability and their customer base with the acquisition of Cargo Holdings International .
The joint aircraft fleet will comprise 135 aircraft with a heavy focus on medium sized airfreight capacity focused on 767's. CHI has over 30 customers, including the U.S. Government, BAX/Schenker, DHL, the USPS and UPS. CHI operates 30 767's, so their fleet mixes well with ABX.
In the last several months, ASTAR Airlines, another DHL air cargo provider, made an offer to acquire ABX. ABX rebuffed that offer. The acquisition of Cargo Holdings by ABX might broaden the ABX customer base enough to insulate ABX from outside acquisition, at least without a corresponding premium.
WILMINGTON, Ohio—ABX Air Inc. announced earlier today that it has agreed to acquire Cargo Holdings International (CHI) for approximately $350 million. The deal is expected to be completed by the end of the year, according to ABX officials.
CHI is an Orlando, Florida-based provider of outsourced air cargo services and air cargo transportation and related services to domestic and foreign air carriers and other companies that outsource their air cargo lift requirements to reliable, cost-effective independent operators. It also provides aircraft leasing, fuel management, specialized transportation management, and air charter brokerage services. CHI has more than 30 customers, including BAX/Schenker, the U.S. Government, DHL, the U.S. Post Office, and UPS. And it operates 32 aircraft, including: five Boeing 767-200s and one 757-200 currently undergoing freighter conversion. According to an ABX statement, CHI expects to report $300 million in revenue for 2007.
In a conference call with media and Wall Street analysts this
morning, ABX President and CEO Joe Hete said that this acquisition is a
“transforming event” for ABX that will create value for both customers
and shareholders.
“By acquiring CHI, we will broaden and strengthen our service
platform by diversifying our customer base and expanding our service
offerings,” said Hete. “Both companies have a core relationship with
one large global client. In CHI’s case, it is BAX/Schenker, and ours it
is DHL. Both have also cultivated strong relationships with other
airlines, forwarders, and shippers. These customers—and others—provide
us with a broad platform for growth, as it enables us to offer the
diverse services of both companies with a larger combined customer
base.”
The ABX statement added that ABX and CHI cumulatively have a fleet
comprised of more than 135 aircraft and will operate the largest fleet
of 767 freighter aircraft in the world. |
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