Merger of Iceland Travel and Gray Line


An agreement has been reached on the merger of Iceland Travel ehf., which is fully owned by Icelandair Group, and Allrahanda GL ehf. which is jointly owned by the founders of the company and Akur fjárfestingar slhf.  Allrahanda GL operates as Gray Line Iceland with a licence agreement from Gray Line Worldwide. Following the merger, Icelandair Group will own 70% of the merged company, while the owners of Allrahanda GL ehf. will own 30%. The objective of the merger is to further improve services to customers and at the same time to achieve rationalisation in the companies’ operations. The management and operation of the companies will be combined. The merger is subject to the results of due diligence and the approval of regulatory authorities.

Gray Line’s turnover in 2015 amounted to ISK 3.6 billion, with EBITDA at ISK 0.6 billion. In 2016 the Company´s turnover amounted to ISK 3.9 billion, with EBITDA at 0.2 billion. The aggregated turnover of the merged company for 2017 is projected at just short of ISK 18 billion. The two companies have worked together successfully for years with specialization in different segments of the tourist sector.

Björgólfur Jóhannsson, President and CEO of Icelandair Group and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Iceland Travel: "The merger of the two companies is a very positive step forward and will strengthen their business operations over the longer term. Both companies are at the forefront in the Icelandic tourist sector, and the merger will enable them to offer their customers even better services. The competition in the market is fierce, and Iceland and Icelandic businesses are engaged in intense international competition. It is therefore extremely important for operating units to be efficient and for companies to seek all possible ways of streamlining their operations. As a unit, the merged companies will extend over a larger segment of the value chain in the tourist industry than the two separate companies could manage separately. This translates into exciting opportunities for continued progress, as there are numerous interesting developments that are occurring in the Icelandic tourist industry.“

Further information:

Björgólfur Jóhannsson, President and CEO of Icelandair Group, tel. +354-896-1455
Bogi Nils Bogason, CFO, Icelandair Group tel: + 354 665-8801