GE Shipping takes over P&O Travel

Increases stake in P&O's travel arm to 63.64%

The Great Eastern Shipping Company, the country's largest private sector shipping firm, has increased its stake in P&O Travel India to 63.64 per cent from 25 per cent for an undisclosed price.

GE Shipping informed the Bombay Stock Exchange on Friday that it has acquired 13.52 lakh equity shares, representing 38.64 per cent of the paid-up share capital of the unlisted P&O Travel India, thus making it a subsidiary.

P&O Travel is a part of the pound 10 billion UK-based P&O group which has a strong presence in shipping. The group today has 250 subsidiaries spanning six continents. The P&O group companies are listed on the London, Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Sydney and Tokyo Stock Exchanges.

P&O Travel India, set up as an integral part of the expansion of the P&O network in Asia, has a strong presence in the Bangalore market.

The company provides business travel services to large corporations.

This has emerged as a key area in India with company's outsourcing the travel plans of their executives with a view to cut costs. It is learnt that P&O Travel India will now do the travel planning for GE Shipping.

Further, it offers P&O Leisure products such as cruises, and holiday packages like adventure holidays, theme holidays and incentive based tours. Further it is also involved in organising conferences in India as well as abroad.

GE Shipping, which has been riding the freight market boom, has nearly doubled its fleet size from 1.31 million dwt in 2002-03 to around 2.47 million dwt in 2003-04.