MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company and the Aponte family are making a bold move to break into the hot car and vehicle transport segment. The container carrier giant has agreed to an aggregate equity purchase price of approximately $700 million (NOK 7.643 billion) in a cash tender to acquire Norway-based Gram Car Carriers. 

Vehicle carriers are one of the hottest segments in the shipping industry currently with vessels and capacity in short supply. Gram Car Carriers, currently with a fleet of 18 owned vessels, reports it is the third-largest tonnage provider within the PCTC segment. The company’s operation is mostly mid-sized (up to 5,000 vehicles) and Panamax (up to 7,000 vehicles) vessels and has a small interest in distribution vessels (up to 2,000 vehicles) which are used in a capacity similar to a feeder service in the container segment. Gram has also been harvesting value selling assets including reporting it will recognize a net book gain of $36.6 million on one of its mid-size vessels due to be delivered in the second quarter to its new owner.

MSC is offering a significant premium to the share price of Gram, highlighting it is a 17.5 percent premium to the all-time high closing trading price of the shares. They are offering three-quarters (77 percent)…