The Rhenus Group has signed an agreement to purchase Australian freight forwarder O’Brien Customs and Forwarding, giving it its own presence in the market for the first time.
The O’Brien family business handles air and sea freight consignments and provides customs and warehouse services and is headquartered in northern Melbourne.
Rhenus chief operating officer ocean freight Asia Jan Harnisch said: "The takeover of O’Brien and the founding of the national company to be known as Rhenus Logistics Australia enable us to cover the whole of Australia with our services.
"As a result of the acquisition, we’re gaining experienced employees with local expertise for the global operations of the air & ocean business unit at Rhenus Freight Logistics too."
The company was initially founded as a pure customs clearance firm by Jan and Shane O’Brien in 1996. O’Brien has been offering its customers air and sea freight transportation in addition to customs services for seven years.
The new Rhenus operations on the Australian continent are part of the logistics specialist’s expansion strategy in the Asia-Pacific region. Rhenus is planning to open a number of new business sites this year in this area, including centres in China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines.
