Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (RCCL), the world’s second largest cruise shipping group, and Madrid-based private equity firm Springwater Capital have announced an agreement whereby RCCL will sell a 51% stake in Pullmantur and Croisieres de France (CDF), the Spanish and French focused units of the RCCL group, the Miami based company said in a statement.
RCCL will have a 49% stake in the venture and retain full ownership of the ships and planes currently operated by Pullmantur and CDF, which will be leased into the joint venture. RCL will also provide marine operations services to Pullmantur and CDF through a management agreement.
"Given the signs of recovery we have seen in the Spanish economy, as well as increased interest in cruising from tourists in France, we think this is the right time to bring together the extensive experience of our deeply valued employees at Pullmantur and CDF with the local travel and tourism expertise of the Springwater team. Springwater's local management presence in Madrid, coupled with RCCL's long-standing history in cruise operations, will provide the foundation for improved returns in the future,” said Richard Fain, Chairman and CEO of RCCL, in the statement.
The joint venture expands on the successful, pre-existing partnership between RCCL and Springwater for the Wamos air transport, travel agency, and tour operation businesses. This investment also expands Springwater's existing tourism portfolio, which includes airline and travel agency investments in Spain, France and Portugal, RCCL said in the statement.
It is expected to result in an immaterial one-time gain, which will be excluded from RCCL's key metrics. Given the markets in which Pullmantur operates, the transaction is expected to have partially offsetting impacts on yields and expenses.
The amount of these impacts will depend on when regulatory approvals are received and the transaction closes, but the net effect on the company's 2016 bottom line is expected to be neutral to marginally positive, RCCL said.
