Temasek on the lookout for buyers for loss-making NOL

It’s no longer a strategic investment.

Singapore’s Temasek is reported to have put loss-making Neptune Orient Lines (NOL) for sale.

A report by OCBC Investment Research noted that NOL is in talks with a prospective buyer but no agreement has been reached on price, according to an article from the Wall Street Journal.

OCBC said that after divesting its logistics business in May this year, NOL has become a pure-play container shipping company and is indeed now more attractive to prospective buyers.

Temasek increased its stake in NOL from 30% to 68.6% at $2.80/share back in 2004, when Singapore was still building up the nation as a shipping and trading hub.

“In our view, with NOL no longer a key strategic investment as it was 10 years ago, it does make sense for Temasek to exit its investment in a struggling industry,” OCBC said.