LONDON -- The consolidation of P&O's passenger cruise
operations under one roof is not likely to be completed until the
fall, company officials said.
Nevertheless, P&O expects the new division to be listed on
the New York and London stock exchanges by the end of 2000.
P&O, the British shipping company and parent of Los
Angeles-based Princess Cruises and Aida Cruises of Germany, said it
would "demerge" its cruise division from the rest of its holdings,
spinning the business off into a separate group. The original
shipping unit, meanwhile, will focus on P&O's ferry and port
operations.
Peter Ratcliffe, president of Princess and a P&O board
member, will be the chief executive officer of the new cruise unit.
P&O's shares are publicly traded in the U.K., and European
financial press reports said Princess' cruise division will be
worth $8.8 billion to $10.4 billion by year's end.
Additionally, a U.S. listing would make Princess attractive to
U.S. investors. P&O's cruise business accounted for 40% of the
shipping group's operating profit in 1998 and has grown 17%
annually for the past decade, the company said.