Sea-Land unit being sold

From staff and wire reports

RICHMOND, Va. -- CSX Corp. plans to sell Sea-Land Service Inc.'s international liner business to A.P. Moller-Maersk Line for $800 million.

The combined services will be marketed under the name Maersk-SeaLand, the companies said today. The deal does not include Sea-Land's domestic container shipping to and from Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico, and Guam, or terminal facilities in Hong Kong and several other locations, which will remain under CSX ownership, the companies said.

John L. Sutherland, vice president and general manager of Sea-Land's Hawaii service, said the changes mean that the company will be able to concentrate more on its Hawaii and Guam service.

CSX and Denmark-based A.P. Moller said the deal is expected to be finalized in about four months. It includes about 70 container vessels, about 200,000 containers, related container terminals and certain lease obligations from CSX.

The sale also will allow Richmond, Va.-based CSX to focus its resources on its takeover of Conrail, Snow said. Since CSX and Norfolk Southern Corp. assumed control of Conrail's routes in June, problems and mix-ups have plagued both companies, causing delayed shipments, clogged rail crossings and customer complaints.

CSX operates the largest rail network in the eastern United States and provides intermodal and contract logistics services. In 1998 CSX earned $537 million on revenue of $9.9 billion. A.P. Moller Group, with headquarters in Copenhagen, is engaged in shipping, exploration for and production of oil and gas, shipbuilding, aviation and other ventures. It has more than 40,000 employees and offices in about 100 countries.