INTERNATIONAL: Finmeccanica and Hitachi announced on November 2 the 'closing of transactions' covering the acquisition by Hitachi of AnsaldoBreda and Finmeccanica’s 40% stake in Ansaldo STS. Having acquired the largest shareholding in the signalling business, Hitachi will now launch a mandatory tender offer for all the remaining shares, in accordance with Italian law.
Earlier this year Finmeccanica selected Hitachi as ‘the best industrial partner to ensure a successful long-term repositioning of its Transportation business’, subject to approval of the deal by the competition authorities in various countries. The company reiterated its belief that the integration into Hitachi ‘will secure the best possible future for the Ansaldo STS and AnsaldoBreda businesses and their employees’.
Under the agreements signed on February 24, following a dividend distribution announced on March 6, the purchase price for Finmeccanica’s stake in Ansaldo STS has been set at €9·50 per share, amounting to a total of €761m. The total net consideration to be paid for AnsaldoBreda as a going concern, including property assets, amounts to around €30m.
As a result of these transactions, Finmeccanica Group’s net debt at the end of 2015 will fall by around €600m, with a capital gain preliminarily estimated at about €250m. Finmeccanica has already reflected the ‘deconsolidation’ of its Transportation business in its guidance for the 2015 financial year.
CEO Mauro Moretti said ‘with the sale of the Transportation business, Finmeccanica becomes a pure aerospace, defence and security player. This is a key step in the execution of our Industrial Plan, aimed at focusing and strengthening the group in the core business and at delivering on our economic and financial objectives. I am sure that both AnsaldoBreda and Ansaldo STS will play a key role in the future development of the Hitachi Rail business worldwide.’
Alistair Dormer, Global CEO for Hitachi Rail Group, said that the acquisitions would strengthen Hitachi’s position in signalling and traffic management systems, expand its turnkey operations and enlarge its portfolio with ‘world-class’ products. ‘The combination of Ansaldo and Hitachi’s complementary portfolios will deliver a unique opportunity to pursue untapped growth potential in new markets’, he added.
