Joint Venture With Transport & Freight Forwarding International Co., Ltd In Thailand
The Board of Directors (the "Board") of Samudera Shipping Line Ltd (the "Company") wishes to announce that the Company has entered into a Joint Venture Agreement with Transport & Freight Forwarding International Co., Ltd, a company incorporated in Thailand ("TRAFFIC"), and the incorporation of a joint venture company, Samudera Traffic Co., Ltd ("STC" or "JV Company"), in Thailand at the end of March 2004. The details of the JV Company are as follows:-
| Authorised and issued share capital | : | 5,000 shares with a par value of Baht 1,000 per share comprising of 2,550 Ordinary Shares and 2,450 Preferred Shares, with the following voting rights for each class of Shares:- a) 1 vote for every 1 Ordinary Share, and b) 2 votes for every 1 Preferred Share. |
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| Percentage of equity held by the Company | : | 49% (2,450 Preferred Shares) |
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| Principal activities | : | Acting as general shipping agents in Thailand. |
With board representation and the effective voting right of 65.8% in the JV Company, the Company will have management control of STC.
The rationale for the joint venture is that it is part of the Company's strategic plan to raise the Company's profile in Thailand, and also to enable the Company to monitor better its business there. With a stake in the JV Company and since the Company will be appointing the JV Company as its general shipping agent in Thailand, the Company expects to further develop its business in Thailand by capitalizing on TRAFFIC's expertise, customer network, marketing capabilities and experience in the ship agency business in the country.
The investment in the JV Company was funded through internal resources and is not expected to have any material impact on the consolidated net tangible assets and earnings per share of the Group for the current financial year.
None of the directors or controlling shareholders of the Company has any interest, direct or indirect, in the above transaction.