Two "well financed" Hamburg, Germany, headquartered shipping companies have founded a joint venture, Quayside Maritime Partners, to acquire ships in the present market for later sale at an appropriate value during a period of market recovery.
The two are E.R. Capital Holding and Schulte Group. Both will contribute "significant equity" to the joint venture.
"Together, the two companies currently manage a fleet of approximately 800 vessels and employ more than 20,000 employees at sea worldwide," says Ian Beveridge, Chief Executive Officer of Schulte Group. "The partnership makes it possible for Quayside Maritime Partners to operate all vessel types – from containerships and bulk carriers to tankers, platform supply vessels and anchor handlers – in a technically and commercially ideal way."
The first vessel to be acquired is a Panamax containership.
"Quayside Maritime Partners is benefiting from the extensive international network of its parent companies and the many contacts to liner shipping companies as well as lenders and shareholders," say Nicholas Teller, Chief Executive Officer of E.R. Capital Holding. "Following the creation of an initial portfolio, additional interested investors can acquire a stake in Quayside Maritime Partners."
Managing Directors of Quayside Maritime Partners  are Philipp Wünschmann, from the E.R. Group, and Dietrich Schleicher, from Schulte Group.
The joint venture is subject to the approval of the German Federal Cartel Office.