February 2 - Panalpina will fully integrate its partner Apollo in Perth, Australia stating that the Apollo set-up ideally complements Panalpina's already existing office which focuses on industrial projects and the oil and gas business.

After the acquisition of Apollo Forwarding in Adelaide last year, Panalpina will now incorporate another long-time partner company, Apollo in Perth. Although having traded under the same name, the two companies have never been related to each other.

Panalpina Australia and Apollo Perth commenced their partnership in 1997, with Apollo Perth having acted as Panalpina's agent both locally and globally.

Jörg Granzow, Panalpina's area managing director Oceania, says: "Our existing office in Perth focuses on industrial project forwarding and services for the oil and gas industry. By adding Apollo to our organisation, we can now offer the entire forwarding and logistics product portfolio under one roof and as one Panalpina unit. This refers particularly to local services such as customs clearance and distribution. Apollo Perth, whose management will stay on board, will benefit from Panalpina's global network, and our existing Oil & Gas and PanProjects customers have one point of contact for all their needs, be it ocean freight, air freight, local services or tailor made industry solutions. With the acquisition we move closer to the customers and at the same time improve our processes" he says. The impact on the Group's revenues and customer portfolio will not be substantial.

Karl Weyeneth, Panalpina's chief operating officer and member of the Executive Board, elaborates: "the Western Australian market is becoming more and more important, particularly due to the increasing oil and gas and mining business. Obviously, we are determined to take full advantage of this growth. As one Panalpina unit we can also use synergies when it comes to further develop our industry specific transport and logistics solutions, both for local and international customers", he adds.