Magyar Vagon open to SEPI participation in Talgo takeover bid, but refuses to meet Oscar Puente

What is curious is that during this time they did not request any official meeting.. As EL ESPAÑOL-Invertia has learned, the company has not requested any meeting or appointment with any representative of the Ministry of Transport.

Actually, Andras Tombor, Senior Executive Director, Magyar Vagonadmitted last Wednesday that He did not meet with Transport Minister Oscar Puente. “Your doubts about the proposal have reached my ears through the media. That is why I believe we must be patient and give everyone time to learn about the proposal in detail and make an appropriate decision,” he said.

Yes, they had many meetings with different people in Spain before and after the CNMV prospectus was presented. These were “meetings with industry representatives and decision-makers” that left him with a “positive impression,” he added.

Despite this, and after months of silence, the company arrived in Spain to open the door to “reasonable proposals from the government and the Spanish business community.”

Andras Tambor repeated several times that they are “flexible” and open to “recommendations and suggestions so that the process can move faster.”

This means that the consortium could consider the possibility of government intervention through the State Industrial Participation Initiative (SEPI) or some other company offering to buy Talgo.

All this, making it clear that your offer is the best and the only one in the face of government efforts to find an alternative plan for Talgo with other partners. “This is the only proposal that can help Talgo continue to succeed,” he said. In reality, it was even clearer: “There are no other options on the horizon for Talgo.”

Moreover, he stated that “if there is another counter takeover offer, it must exceed the price of 5 euros.” They describe the price as “high.” It should be remembered that the takeover offer is targeting 100% of Talgo’s capital, for a total of 619.3 million euros.

Potential partners

The Hungarians not only broke the silence by leaving the ball in the government’s court, but also, if possible, increased the pressure. They also took the opportunity to assess the other candidates invited to the party.

SEPI, CAF, Skoda, Escribano, Criteria… These are the names of companies that were strongly encouraged to become part of the government’s alternative plan. Some of them were even heard backwards. That is, as partners for Magyar Vagon.

As for Criteria, the investment arm of La Caixa Foundation, they respect the company, which they call “serious”.. Another actor on stage who sounds like a possible partner: CAF. For Andras Tambor, it is also a “serious” company. However, he believes that they are now “at a very early stage to talk about working with CAF.”

The company itself also prefers to remain on the sidelines. “We always appear in pools, but we have not positioned ourselves and we do not intend to position ourselves,” CAF sources tell the newspaper.

On the side of potential partners to come out with Magyar Vagon, The first outlier is the Czech company Skoda.Skoda may be interested in the deal. “It used to be an important player, but now the company is suffering losses, and this makes it not a strong candidate for cooperation,” he said.

However, to date they have not received any concrete proposals for cooperation. So the situation is more or less the same as three months ago. That is, when the government is against the takeover proposal possible connections of buyers with Russian interests and with the Hungarian consortium insisting on closing the operation for which The executive branch could make a decision on August 10.

Deadlines

On April 4, the Hungarian group Magyar Vagon officially submitted to the CNMV its announced takeover bid for 100% of the capital of the Spanish railway company Talgo. The takeover bid is for 100% of Talgo’s capital for a total of 619.3 million euros at a price of 5 euros per share.

In principle, there is support from Pegaso. The instrument company owns 40% of the shares owned by the Trilantic fund and the Oriol and Abello families.

On 22 April, the CNMV accepted the request for authorisation of the takeover bid. This did not imply any decision on the authorisation of the bid or any of its conditions.

CNMV President Rodrigo Buenaventura explained that the supervisory authority cannot consider the takeover bid that Magyar Vagon has submitted for 100% of Talgo until the Foreign Investment Council gives its approval.

Government permission is an important requirement. continue to operate, applying the takeover protection approved in connection with Covid-19, as well as Law 19/2003 on the legal regime of capital movements and economic transactions abroad.

As soon as the government gives its consent Finethe supervisory authority will complete its “examination of the Talgo takeover proposal by authorizing it.” If the Foreign Investment Board had not received approval, the institution chaired by Buenaventura would not have been able to authorize the transaction.

As we mentioned, the next meeting on the calendar is August 10: The government is expected to make a statement on this day if no further information is required. in addition to the company. “The deadline may be extended because the government wants to know about potential investors, and we are patiently waiting for an answer,” said a representative of the Hungarian company, aware of the concerns of the Spanish executive.