April 18 - APM Terminals has acquired an 80 percent shareholding in Poti Sea Port, located on Georgia's Black Sea coast, from the UAE's Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority (RAKIA) of the UAE.

As well as handling containers, the port which is regognised as the largest in the Republic of Georgia, handles liquid and dry bulk cargoes, including heavy and OOG shipments, as well as providing important passenger/freight ferry connections 

Poti Sea Port has experienced high growth over the last decade and the fundamentals for continued solid growth remain. APM Terminals sees Poti as becoming a future hub for the central Asia trade.

The Black Sea region has a strong potential, with its skilled and industrious labour force and its mineral resources. With fast economic growth, the region's importers and exporters will require high quality port infrastructure, and so naturally it is a market in which we have great interest. With our track record of world class port operations and development in all markets, we believe we can add a lot of value to Poti Sea Port to generate more business, stated APM Terminals senior vice president and head of New Terminals, Peder Sondergaard. 

APM Terminals Poti will operate Poti Sea Port in a joint venture with RAKIA. Hans-Ole Madsen, APM Terminals vice president for Business Development stated: "RAKIA has done a great job in Poti over the last three years and we look forward to continuing to develop the port to expand Georgia's role as a regional logistics hub." 

The company plans investments in upgrading and expanding the port facilities to meet APM Terminals' world-class performance levels in productivity and safety. "We expect to invest USD 100 million over the next five years", added Sondergaard.

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