The Basque government, like the Spanish government, supports the solution option represented by the President of Sidenor. “The option of carrots today is that of José Antonio Jainaga. He has our complicity. The two governments are on the same page,” he stressed.
The Spanish government plans to complete the purchase of Talgo before the end of the month by Sidenor, a company that is positively rated for this operation, although financing has yet to be secured.
The Sidenor option is preferred by the Executive and is the option currently on the table for the purchase of 29.9% of Talgo, owned by the Trilantic fund, managed by two former Lehman Brothers financiers. In the longer term, they could give access to actors such as the Polish Pesa or the Indian Jupiter Wagons.
The Ministry of Transport held a meeting on Thursday attended by representatives of the Basque government, Sidenor and Trilantic, with no details finalized yet, but in which the ministry made it clear that it wants to complete it this month.
At the end of 2024, the shareholder agreement expired between Trilantic, part of the founding family of Talgo (7%) and Juan Abelló’s Torreal fund (3%), which together control 40% through the instrumental company Pegaso. Now the former has his hands free to act alone.
The Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, was very clear on Thursday about his preferences for Sidenor, understanding that it can provide the industrial capacity that Talgo lacks and preserve the Spanishness of a company that the government considers strategic.
The operation is also welcomed within the Basque government, as it would mean the consolidation of Talgo, a company with a strong commitment in the area, as it has one of its two factories, the largest, in the municipality of Alava in Rivabellosa, with 700 employees.
The Minister of Industry, Energy Transition and Sustainability of the Basque Government, Mikel Jauregi, has expressed his concern about “the challenges facing the company”, stressing that the Basque Government is keen to “have stability” and that “the future owner of Those actions have an industrial project for the future”.
“That person or entity has a proven track record in industrial projects, as José Antonio Jainaga has as president of Sidenor; that the project promotes the company’s roots in Euskadi; and of course that jobs and also the entire network of suppliers, which is very important, especially here in Álava,” he emphasized.
Next steps
Following Sidenor’s purchase, government sources indicate that other companies could also find themselves in a second wave, including Poland’s Pesa or India’s Jupiter Wagons.
The financial details of the operation are still up in the air, pending the entry of the Basque fund Finkatuz (which has interests in Caf, ITP Aero or Kaiku), that of the state-owned company SEPI or even that of Criteria Caixa, which he was always in the pools.
Source: EITB
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
