German media reports say that Arriva’s German parent group, state railway Deutsche Bahn (DB), has postponed plans for the sell-off or possible public flotation of the UK-based transport group.
The DB supervisory board in Berlin decided in November to put the sale on hold after the number of bids for the company, which operates buses and trains across Europe, fell short of expectations. DB sources say the sum being offered was below Arriva’s book value.
A decision on whether a deal will go ahead has been put back to January or possibly April. Uncertainty surrounding Britain’s decision to leave the European Union was also cited as a reason for the change of heart. The sell-off was first announced in April.
According to Germany’s DPA news wire, the only serious offer for Arriva on the table was for €2.5billion (£2.14billion) from an unnamed bidder. The offer is thought to have come from global investment group Carlyle. The US-based company had previously been named in UK press reports as a front-runner in negotiations.
This bid is well below the €4billion (£3.4billion) that DB said it expected to gain from the sale. It is also less than the €2.…
