Fincantieri paying $74m for STX France
Price revealed as Italian yard signs contract with France.
February 5th, 2018 10:04 GMT
by Gary Dixon
Published in SHIPYARDS
Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri is paying EUR 59.7m ($74.4m) to take control of STX France.
The price was revealed as the yard group signed a contract with the French state to own 50% of the cruiseship builder.
It will be loaned another 1% by the French government, represented by the Agence des Participations de l’Etat (APE).
Fincantieri ‘to close STX France deal’
“The acquisition by Fincantieri is subject to the closing of the transaction between the French state and STX Europe and to customary conditions for this kind of transaction,” Fincantieri said.
France will retain 34.34%, with French military shipbuilder Naval Group on 10%, or 15.66% if employee and local company ownership cannot be implemented at the same time.
The plan is for STX France employees to own up to 2.4%, with local companies having up to 3.26%
Fincantieri will have four board members, including its chairman, plus CEO Giuseppe Bono, with two for France, one from Naval Group and one from the workers.
Naval tie-up planned
In September, France confirmed that the yard would finally be allowed to take control of STX France.
The Paris government will be able to demand the 1% back if Fincantieri fails to honour terms relating to jobs, management or intellectual property.
Fincantieri’s STX France takeover confirmed
Italy and France will now explore the forming of a joint naval defence group, merging Naval Group, formerly DCNS, with Fincantieri.
This could be tied up by the summer.
In April 2017, the Italian yard group signed an agreement to acquire 66% of STX France, but then sell 7% on to Italian investor Fundazione CR Trieste and 12% to DCNS, bringing its holding down to 48%.
But the first signs of trouble appeared when new French president Emmanuel Macron said he wanted to revise this structure, and the yard was later temporarily nationalised, calling a halt to the deal.
