Zeaborn Acquires the Ship Management Business ER Schiffahrt

The ZEABORN Group has acquired 100 per cent of the business shares in E.R. Schiffahrt GmbH & Cie. KG (“E.R. Schiffahrt”). With retrospective effect from 1 January 2018, E.R. Schiffahrt’s management, staff and subsidiaries, including the shipbroker Harper Petersen & Co., will be integrated into ZEABORN Group. The relevant contracts were signed by the transaction parties on 1 February 2018. The completion of the transaction is subject to antitrust clearance. The parties have agreed to keep the key financial data confidential.

With the takeover of E.R. Schiffahrt, ZEABORN has achieved another important milestone on its way to becoming an integrated and globally operating shipping company in both line and tramp shipping: the shipping fleet under commercial and technical management has been expanded by 61 container vessels and 20 bulk carriers to more than 165 vessels.

Once E.R. Schiffahrt with all its subsidiaries and the shipbroker Harper Petersen have been integrated, the ZEABORN Group’s employee numbers will be approx-imately 360 staff on shore and more than 5,000 staff at sea. Having locations in Asia, Europe and the US, the company has a global presence.

HANSA PARTNER was responsible for the tax advice and structuring on behalf of the vendor.

Joachim Pietsch (Partner) managed the transaction which required  special tax knowledge in the fields of shipping, ship management and tonnage tax.

Their team commented: “The legal form of the vendor in the German shipping industry was complex and demanding in respect of creating an optimal tax structure within the scope of the merger.”