Finmeccanica railway units may attract late intervention from CdP - report (translated)
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Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CdP), the holding of the Italian Treasury, could make a late intervention in the sale process of the railway operations being sold by listed Italian defence group Finmeccanica, Italian-language daily Il Messaggero reported.
The report cited government sources who said that CdP could take a small stake in the rolling stock manufacturer Ansaldo Breda and listed railway signalling manufacturer Ansaldo STS to underline the strategic importance of both companies and to try and protect job levels.
The report added that Japanese industrial group Hitachi is still the frontrunner for the two units and is believed to have filed a EUR 1.2bn-EUR 1.4bn binding offer yesterday 17 November, the final bid deadline. The report said, however, that the binding offer deadline could be extended to try and get a higher price.
The report also claimed that China CNR Corporation could conjoin forces with Chinese technology group Insigma to make a renewed bid for Ansald Breda and Ansaldo STS. The report added that even if the two Chinese companies do combine forces, they are still unlikely to win the bid.
According to previous unconfirmed reports, China CNR Corporation has dropped out of the race, while Insigma remains in contention.
Source Il Messaggero