Arriva joint venture acquires 49 per cent of Italian bus operator

Leading European passenger transport group Arriva plc todayannounced it has entered into a new joint venture, which hascontracted to acquire 49 per cent of Italian bus operator SPT Lineafor €6.8 million (£4.7 million).

Arriva’s Italian business SAB Autoservizi s.r.l. andLombardy-based Ferrovie Nord Milano Group (FNM SpA), entered into a50/50 joint venture to acquire the shares in SPT Linea.

SPT Linea, part of Società Pubblica Trasporti S.p.A. (SPTSpA), is a publicly-owned transport company with annual revenue of€38.9 million (£26.6 million). The remaining 51 per centof the company is owned by SPT Holding Società S.p.A., apublicly-owned company controlled by Como Council, the provinces ofComo and Lecco and by a consortium of municipalities located in theprovince of Como.

SPT Linea operates 317 buses across the Lombardy region ofnorthern Italy. Employing 539 people, the business provides a rangeof urban and inter-urban routes serving key locations such as theprovince of Como, Lecco, Monza and prestigious tourist resorts suchas Menaggio, Cernobbio and Bellagio. Its service contractoperates until 31 December 2011.

David Martin, chief executive of Arriva plc, said: “We arepleased to join forces with FNM SpA and be successful in winningthis investment opportunity. The joint venture complements ourexisting operations in the Lombardy region and strengthens ourposition as the largest private bus operator in the Italiantransport market.

“SPT Linea has an experienced management team and we lookforward to working with them and FNM SpA to take the businessforward.”

The acquisition is subject to approval from the ItalianCompetition Authority. A decision is anticipated in thecoming months.