EU version

DB Wants to Get Rid of Its Debts—Deal of the Year with VTG Owners Is on the Table

DB Wants to Get Rid of Its Debts—Deal of the Year with VTG Owners Is on the Table
foto: DB AG / Public domain/Deutsche Bahn Logo
04 / 06 / 2024

Deutsche Bahn (DB) has selected four finalists for the sale of its logistics division DB Schenker out of 20 bidders. The finalists now have a few weeks to make more detailed offers. The sale is intended to help DB pay off its debts.

Deutsche Bahn (DB) has selected four finalists for the sale of DB Schenker from around 20 bidders. This is because DB has decided to sell its logistics arm DB Schenker to cover its outstanding debt, estimated at EUR 34 billion. The price for DB Schenker could reach EUR 15 billion.

The shortlist included Danish carriers Maersk and DSV, Saudi national carrier Bahri, and a partnership of investment funds CVC Capital Partners, Carlyle Group, and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. DB was knocked out of the competition by MSC. The final four bidders will have the opportunity to submit more detailed bids in the coming weeks. A definitive agreement is expected to be signed this year, with the sale to be completed in 2025.

However, RAILTARGET's editors were intrigued by an interesting link from the rail freight sector, namely the participation of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. The latter was until a few years ago the owner of VTG, the largest railcar leasing company, and the Global Investment Partners GIP fund. Today, VTG is no longer a publicly traded company.

It has been transformed into an LLC and is owned by the GIP fund, which has been part of the Black Rock group of investment asset managers since this year. GIP profiles itself as an investment platform for other rail companies. It is possible that DB Schenker is on the lookout for global and horizontal integration of rail freight companies and a future merger with VTG would have commercial benefits.

 

Source: RAILTARGET, Deutsche Bahn

Tagy