HNA Group Co is seeking a buyer for its container-leasing business Seaco, people familiar with the matter said, marking the latest attempt by the Chinese conglomerate to reduce its debt pile. HNA is working with an adviser on the potential sale, which could fetch about US$1 billion, according to the people.
The conglomerate decided to sell Seaco as part of its strategy to divest assets unrelated to its core aviation business, one of the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private.
Seaco, which is controlled by HNA’s Shenzhen-listed Bohai Capital Holding Co unit, may draw interest from other global rivals in the container leasing industry, the people said. No final decisions have been made, and there is no certainty the deliberations will lead to a sale of Seaco, according to the people.
Seaco should see strong bids, and those potentially interested could include Triton International Ltd, Textainer Group Holdings Ltd or Chinese box manufacturer China International Marine Containers (Group) Co, said Rahul Kapoor, a Singapore-based transportation and logistics analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence.
