Pangaea Acquires MTM’s Handy Dry Bulk Fleet

U.S.-based maritime logistics and transport company Pangaea has announced its acquisition of M.T. Maritime’s (MTM) fleet of fifteen handy-sized dry bulk vessels in what has been estimated as a $193 million transaction.

The fifteen vessels that have been acquired range in size from 33,000 DWT to 40,000 DWT, placing them firmly within ‘handy’ territory. The average age of the acquired vessels is approximately ten and a half years. Prior to the transaction, the vessels were owned by Strategic Shipping Inc (SSI); a privately held company managed by MTM.

In addition to the vessels, seven of MTM’s staff will be joining Pangaea. In addition, MTM’s Senior Vice President of Dry Cargo and Strategic Planning will be joining the executive management team of Pangaea in the role of Chief Strategy Officer. 

The move follows a spate of recent acquisitions in the U.S. shipping market. These acquisitions have arguably been made in anticipation of a more protectionist regime - it being notable that the acquired companies are Jones Act compliant. 

Commenting on the acquisition, Richard du Moulin, Chairman of the Board of Pangaea Logistics Solutions, said:

“This transaction represents a transformational strategic milestone for our business, one that expands our owned fleet by nearly 60% to 41 vessels, and provides us opportunities to drive incremental growth and improve our efficiency and profitability. The addition of the SSI vessels to our existing fleet is consistent with our strategic focus on upgrading our owned vessel fleet to meet the evolving cargo needs of our customers”. 

Mark Filanowski, Pangaea’s Chief Executive Officer, commented: 

“We have always operated in the handy segment, but the addition of these vessels will allow us to offer expanded services and will help us to better leverage our integrated shipping and port logistics models, improving overall fleet utilisation, and maximising our profitability. 

Importantly, MTM’s highly experienced dry bulk chartering and operations teams will be joining Pangaea, along with certain members of the MTM executive team. We are excited to welcome the experienced and talented group from MTM, who will help ensure a seamless integration of our business plans and position us for continued future growth.

We believe the transaction is extremely attractive from both a financial and strategic perspective and will allow us to further take advantage of the favourable macro backdrop in the dry bulk market. Together with the MTM team, we are excited for this next chapter of growth and believe that our partnership will serve to continue the development of our leading dry bulk logistics and transportation service offering, while delivering sustainable above-market returns for our shareholders”.

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