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Dubai: Dnata Travel Services, the Middle East's leading travel services company, on Monday confirmed purchase of a 20 per cent stake in UK-based Hogg Robinson Group (HRG).
"The two companies have worked together for many years with Dnata being the HRG partner in the Middle East and West Asia region," Dnata said in a statement.
"This investment is seen as a long-term move to further develop the profitability of the two companies."
Shaikh Ahmad Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Group, said: "This is a significant deal for Dnata and the Emirates Group. I am delighted that the Emirates Group is being formally linked with a company of the calibre of Hogg Robinson Group and I congratulate all those at Dnata who have worked so hard to bring this deal to a successful conclusion."
Long relationship
Iain Andrew, divisional senior vice-president, Dnata, said: "Dnata has a long standing relationship with Hogg Robinson Group, which we are keen to maintain and develop. This investment signifies the level of confidence we have in our relationship with HRG and our desire to take that relationship to the next level.
"We view this as a long-term investment, not a speculative move. Although the global economy in general and the travel industry in particular are facing challenging times, we believe they will recover and organisations that offer quality, professional and cost effective solutions will continue to do well.
"HRG works on a fee per transaction basis. Therefore the company is not as directly affected by the high price of oil as some other companies in the travel industry, such as airlines. Furthermore, we believe the need for corporate travel services will not disappear.
"Despite the difficult circumstances faced by the travel industry, the combined synergies of the two companies and the possible additional revenue streams available to us, make this an economically attractive investment."
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