Mangrove Rejects Offer And Makes Counter Offer For ASCO Singapore

Mangrove Holdings Pte Ltd (“Mangrove”) today announced that it has rejected an offer made by joint venture partner ASCO Holdings Ltd (“ASCO Holdings”) for the shares it holds in ASCO Freight Management Pte Ltd (“ASCO Singapore”) and instead made a counter offer to acquire ASCO Holdings’ majority share.

Commenting on the discussions, Neil Johnson, CEO of Mangrove, noted: “We believe ASCO Holdings’ offer significantly underestimates the value of the market for oil and gas logistics services in the region, places minimal value on the existing client base and ignores the results the ASCO Singapore team have shown in building a solid presence in Asia.”

Noting that under Mangrove’s stewardship, ASCO delivered a steady stream of underlying profits, Johnson added: “Billions of dollars of both opex and capex are planned for oil and gas within the region, all of which will have a major logistics component. It is a market in which Mangrove will continue to invest and we are actively seeking further acquisitions to complement our investment in ASCO Singapore.”

Mangrove presently owns 20% percent of ASCO Singapore with the balance held by its joint venture partner ASCO Holdings Ltd.

NOTES TO EDITORS

Mangrove is a Singapore registered business with investments predominantly in the logistics and supply chain industry. Mangrove is 100% owned by Neil Johnson, a British national based in Singapore, and was established in 2002 to invest in logistics and supply chain industry businesses.  Mangrove co-founded EP-Team, Inc. in the United States, which was recently acquired by BNSF Logistics, a Berkshire Hathaway company.

Contact Information

Kelly Ong

PA to the CEO

Mangrove Holdings Pte Ltd

(65) 9113 5316

kelly.ong@mangroveholdings.com