Eurotunnel to acquire GB Railfreight

[WatcherZero]

Now this is unexpected, SNCF was expected to bag it after First put it up for sale, but it appears as if Eurotunnel has managed to outbid it and acquired the company for £30m.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e92d984c-6d15-11df-921a-00144feab49a.html?ftcamp=rss

 

[Oliver]

Now this is unexpected, SNCF was expected to bag it after First put it up for sale, but it appears as if Eurotunnel has managed to outbid it and acquired the company for £30m.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e92d984c-6d15-11df-921a-00144feab49a.html?ftcamp=rss

Well if GBRf has to be sold then Eurotunnel is a suitable buyer. Certainly something is needed to increase the amount of rail freight through the tunnel.

 

[GB]

It is good news for staff and customers as a whole. Things should pretty much stay as they are as far as GBRF are concerned, including its name, brand and reputation.

 

[DaveNewcastle]

Now this is unexpected, . . . . . . . Eurotunnel has managed to outbid it and acquired the company for £30m.

Well, not ENTIRELY unexpected! (I posted this on 4th May)

More here from Dow Jones Newswires
Tuesday, 01/06/10, 07:59 (with lower price) :

Eurotunnel Buys FirstGroup's GB Rail Freight For GBP26.3M
PARIS (Dow Jones)--French cross-channel tunnel and freight transport operator Groupe Eurotunnel SA (GET.FR) said Tuesday it has acquired the GB Rail Freight operations of FirstGroup PLC (FGP.LN) for GBP26.3 million.

"This acquisition, completed without any increase in debt, is in line with [Eurotunnel's] development strategy which, confident that the sector will continue to expand, aims to develop a leading position in the European rail freight market in the future," the French company said in a statement.

GB Rail Freight is profitable and employs 299 people, generating revenue of GBP56 million in 2009, Eurotunnel said.

-By A.H. Mooradian, Dow Jones Newswires; +33 1 4017 1740

 

[bobshuruncle]

Well I'm glad that's over, quite a worrying 6 weeks.Looks like it could be an interesting deal with lots of possibilities,maybe opening up the european market for GB.......can we just go back to being gb now please?

 

[GB]

can we just go back to being gb now please?

Think they are already on the case. Alot of the internal emails have changed from XX@firstgroup.com to XX@GBrailfreight.com ...didnt take them long!

 

[EWS 58038]

Whats more intresting is how a financialy "not that strong" company can acquire a financially heathy business....

 

[GB]

Whats more intresting is how a financialy "not that strong" company can acquire a financially heathy business....

What we have to remember is that Eurotunnel is the parent company (much like First was) and its actually one of Eurotunnel's subsidary, Europorte, that has aquired GB. As far as I know, this area of the buisness is doing fairly well.

 

[Oliver]

Whats more intresting is how a financially "not that strong" company can acquire a financially healthy business....

Presumably because they were the highest bidder. But seriously, GBRf provide Eurotunnel with a way to gain access to the whole of the UK for cross channel freight so they are worth more to Eurotunnel than to existing UK operators.

 

[GNERman]

Now this is unexpected, SNCF was expected to bag it after First put it up for sale, but it appears as if Eurotunnel has managed to outbid it and acquired the company for £30m.

Is it me or does that seem like not a great deal of money for one of the UK's biggest freight operators?

But then again they have just lost Royal Mail and they don't own any locos or stock...