Maersk Selling Direct ChassisLink

On Feb. 3, Maersk Inc., a subsidiary of the A.P. Moller-Maersk Group, announced that it has entered into an agreement to sell its subsidiary Maersk Equipment Services Company, Inc. d/b/a. Direct ChassisLink, Inc., to Littlejohn & Co., LLC, a private investment firm. Terms of the transaction, which is expected to be final in March 2012, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions, were not disclosed.

Direct ChassisLink (DCLI) rents and leases chassis to drayage companies and steamship lines in the United States. It owns or leases approximately 66,000 chassis and operates a network of 129 locations in the United States.

J. Russell Bruner, chairman and CEO of Maersk Inc., said that it was undertaking the sale because DCLI does not fit with the company's long-term strategic focus.

Edmund J. Feeley, managing director of Greenwich, Conn.-based purchaser Littlejohn, said, "Due to its leadership position, DCLI is uniquely positioned to service the strict requirements of ocean carriers, dray operators and railroads and is a critical link in the nation's intermodal network."

He added, "As an independent company, we look forward to supporting DCLI's management team to grow the business organically and target strategic acquisitions that will further expand its national network."