Plans for P&O Nedllooyd approved

P&O has said shareholders at today's EGM have approved plans for an independent listing of P&O Nedlloyd.

P&O Nedlloyd Container Line operates a fleet of nearly 160 vessels with an overall capacity exceeding 400,000 twenty-foot-equivalent units (TEU) and its network comprises about 85 routes and connects to 235 ports around the globe.

Under the deal, P&O will sell its 50% stake in P&O Nedlloyd to its venture partner Royal Nedlloyd NV for a price of €215m in cash plus a 25% stake in the joint venture.

Royal Nedlloyd will then be renamed Royal P&O Nedlloyd NV.

Subsidiary P&O Ports is one of the world's leading port operators, with stakes in about two dozen container terminals and cargo-handling and other operations in more than 80 ports.

P&O's cold logistics unit provides temperature-controlled warehousing and distribution services.

Previously, P&O's cross-Channel ferry dominance was quashed by the launch of the Eurotunnel, which prompted the company to merge ferry operations with rival Stena Line.