Westminster Group Plc. is pleased to announce that its Managed Services Division has, in conjunction with a 50/50 joint venture partner, CWind Ltd (“CWind”), an experienced UK sea ferry operator, it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (“MoU”) with a government in Africa for the long term provision of a vital sea ferry transfer service which is expected to be operational from the end of 2014.
The service, which will be run under the joint venture name of Sovereign Ferries, will provide a high quality, professional and safe ferry service to transport passengers between key national facilities and the main conurbations and in addition, in due course, will be expanded to include a water taxi service around the coast to neighbouring territories, assisting the country concerned to expand its tourist potential by providing safe transit to and from potential resort areas.
Westminster’s joint venture partners, CWind and its sister company CTruk Ltd are manufacturers and experienced operators of high quality rugged ferries which can operate in all weather conditions and are ideal for this application. It is anticipated that the service will provide a premium service akin to a ‘business class’ level of transit service for all passengers and is expected to be in high demand.
The initial contract will be for a period of up to 25 years. Based on current market conditions and forecasted economic growth, the venture’s revenues are expected to be in the region of $300m over the period, with there being significant incremental revenue potential from further routes and services which we have identified. We expect this service to share many of the strong financial dynamics which are already being delivered by our existing managed services business.