Samoa buys all of Pacific Forum Line as partner nations unload shares

THE Samoan government has acquired 100 per cent of the loss-making Pacific Forum Line (PFL), in which it already held eight per cent, after invoking a pre-emption right to acquire the rest of the shares.

Samoa said that it remains committed to the objectives of PFL, which was founded in 1977 to maintain shipping services in the South Pacific Islands to encourage economic development in these countries, reports Alphaliner.

It said PFL originally had 12 shareholder nations, namely Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Cook Islands, Solomon Islands, Nauru, and Niue. Indeed New Zealand, Fiji and Papua New Guinea collectively controlled three-quarters of the company's shares prior to the buyout