Alphaliner's survey of port operator EBITDA margins shows APMT with the lowest global average margin at 20.6%, lagging behind competitors including ICTSI with 44.3%, DP World with 46% and HPH Trust with 54.4%.
The container terminal arm of Maersk Group attributed its lower margins to its geographic spread and lack of a flagship terminal. Of AMPT's 66 terminals, 24 are located in the lower margin US and Europe regions. Eurogate and HHLA, both operators with Europe-heavy portfolios, do fall within the lowest four of the 17 operators surveyed, but still outperform APMT's global average with 23.9% and 31.7% margins, respectively.
The operator also stated that it operates more transhipment hubs than its competitors in the Asia-Europe trade, which exclusively serve low-margin transhipment boxes.
Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH), APMT's competitor with the most similar global footprint, achieved an EBITDA margin of 32.1% globally, out performing APMT's 20.6% margin. HPH's European terminals, with their inherent lower margins due to increased staffing and equipment costs, reported a 25% EBITDA margin, still higher than APMT's global result.
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