FS Italiane and Astaldi: agreement signed for the sale of M5
Rome, 12 December 2016
Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane and Astaldi have announced they have signed an agreement for the sale of the investment held by Astaldi in M5 SpA, Concessionaire of Line 5 of the Milan Metro.
The transaction calls for the sale of a 36.7% stake (equity and shareholder loan) held by Astaldi in M5, valued at EUR 64.5 million. Astaldi will remain a shareholder with a 2% stake in M5, ensuring support in developing the activities under its responsibility.
The transaction’s closing will take place at the end of the planned authorisation process, as well as upon the outcome of the assessment by the Italian Competition Authority.
As Renato Mazzoncini, Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of FS Italiane, emphasised, «FS Italiane’s entry among the shareholders in Metro 5 marks another step forward in carrying out the Business Plan presented on the 28 September 2016. It is the first time that a subway, the Milan’s M5 Metro line, becomes part of FS Italiane’s portfolio. This transaction» Mazzoncini concluded, «responds to the FS Group’s strategy of moving forward from the “Metropolitana d’Italia”, High Speed and High Capacity network project to a new large-scale project of an integrated services system and infrastructures aiming at improving public transport as well as integrated mobility, also in large urban areas.”
«We’re moving forward with the programme of disposal of the assets» commented Astaldi’s Chairman Paolo Astaldi, «and this transaction, which follows the sale of A4 concluded in September, is another step in our plan’s implementation. The sale of the share held by Astaldi in M5 to FS Italiane took place after a careful selection process on the offers received. We are also assessing, with extreme care, the offers received on other assets in concession.»
Line 5 of the Milan Metro links Bignami Parco Nord station to San Siro Stadio station, along a route extending for about 13 kilometres, with 19 stations and a light transport system connected with Milan’s other underground lines.
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ASTALDI GROUP is one of the leading General Contractors in Italy and one of the top 25 at a European level in the Construction sector where it is also a sponsor of project finance initiatives. It has been active for 90 years at an international level and is present on the market, developing complex and integrated projects involving the design, construction and operation of public infrastructures and large-scale engineering works, mainly in the following segments: Transport Infrastructures, Energy Production Plants, Civil and Industrial Construction and Facility Management, Plant Design and Management of Complex Systems. It has been listed on the Stock Exchange since 2002 and holds 92nd place in Global Contractor rankings. It ended 2015 with a total backlog, including additional orders secured and in the process of being finalised, of over EUR 28 billion and a turnover of EUR 2.9 billion. It has approximately 11,000 employees in Italy, Europe (Poland, Romania and Russia) and Turkey, Africa (Algeria), North America (Canada and the USA), Latin America (Chile, Peru, Venezuela and Central America), the Middle East (Saudi Arabia and Qatar) and the Far East (Indonesia).
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A major industrial player, the FS Italiane Group with a growing profit (the net income rose +53.1% in 2015 over 2014); it runs 8,000 trains a day, serving 600 million passengers and carrying 50 million tons of freight a year, over a network exceeding 16,000 kilometres. FS’s objective is to develop a large-scale mobility and logistics project capable of contributing to the country’s economic growth. The holding company, Holding FS Italiane, controls companies active in specific core businesses – all of which, in terms of safety levels and technological standards, are European leaders. Trenitalia, the Group’s transportation company, is one of Europe’s top railway operators, and manages the transport of freight and passengers. Rete Ferroviaria Italiana is the operator of the national infrastructure, ensuring the various railway companies’ access to the railway network, providing maintenance and safe circulation throughout the infrastructure, making investments to strengthen and develop the railway lines and installations, and developing the technology of the systems and materials. Other companies belonging to the FS Italiane Group include Busitalia, Italferr, Ferservizi, Italcertifer, Centostazioni, GS Rail, FS Sistemi Urbani, Netinera, TX Logistik, and Thello.