RUSSIA: During state visit to France by President Dmitry Medvedev, Alstom and Transmash Holding signed documents on March 1 firming up the strategic partnership agreement which had been signed on March 31 last year.
Subject to certain conditions being met within six months, Alstom will acquire a 25% + 1 share stake in TMH's parent company Breakers Investment BV for an initial payment of US$75m. The balance is to be paid in 2012 and is linked to TMH's results for 2008-11.
The latest agreements include an amendment to details of how the company will be managed, and a master co-operation agreement specifying the terms of joint activities to develop rolling stock and components.
A joint engineering company called Tekhnologii Relsovogo Transporta has already been set up, and is developing centres of excellence for railway equipment design and manufacturing, integrating technologies developed by the two companies. TRT is currently designing the 200 km/h EP-20 electric passenger locomotive as a basis for a future range of Russian locomotives.
Alstom Transport employs 27 000 people in 60 countries, and recorded sales of €5·7bn in 2008-09. TMH employs 57 000 people in Russia and 2009 sales totalled €1·7bn.
