NEWS
World's No. 1 shipping company lauds LNG
Copenhagen, Aug 25 (LNG journal)
– AP Moeller-Maersk, which intends to become a bigger player in the liquefied natural gas market with five new carriers under order with Samsung Heavy Industries, said its tankers and shipping division posted a 28 percent rise in net profit.
The company this month became the world's No. 1 ship operator when it bought rival Royal P&O Nedlloyd for $2.8 billion. It also took over North Sea oil assets for $2.95Bln from Kerr McGee Corp.
The company, controlled by Danish billionaire Maersk McKinney Moeller, aged 92, said net income for the six months to June 30 in its tankers division rose 28 percent to $274 million compared to $214m in the same period of 2004.
“The LNG segment achieved a better result compared to that in the first half-year 2004, though there are still start-up costs,” Moeller-Maersk said, without giving a breakdown of the numbers.
The improved result was particularly due to higher gains on sales of ships and the rates for product and crude carriers were at the level of those in the first-half of 2004. However, the rates for gas carriers were higher, Moeller-Maersk said.
