Spanish assault on Mobico, the British parent company of Alsa

2024-01-06 10:22:46

Mobico, the British parent company of the Asturian transport company Alsa, has become a priority target for Spanish capital in recent weeks. Mobico has owned Alsa since 2005. That year, the Cosmen family agreed to sell the Spanish company to the British company – then called National Express – in exchange for a share package that has been growing, especially in recent months. Since last December 6, the Asturian family has increased its controlling stake in Mobico from 12% to 17.3%, thus reaffirming its position as the main shareholder – the next largest shareholder in the firm is the Liontrust fund, with 5.5% of its capital.

However, another of the Cosmen companies, Northern Express Enterprises, has recently raised another 3% in Mobico’s capital, so the Asturian family’s stake in Mobico would already exceed 20%.

Azvalor

To this important percentage that the Cosmen control, the control of another relevant package of Mobico shares by Spanish capital has been added this week. Azvalor Asset Management, a Spanish manager with assets under management worth more than 2.5 billion euros, also made public this week the acquisition of another 3% of the British firm, a stake valued at around 16.5 million euros.

In total, between the participation of the Cosmen and that of Azvalor, the manager founded by several former Bestinver and former colleagues of Francisco García Paramés in this investment firm, more than 23% of Mobico’s capital is now in Spanish hands.

Although it is a British company listed in London, the truth is that Mobico depends largely on the business that Alsa brings to it. The company, which turned 100 years old in 2023, has a fleet of 5,931 buses, which transport 527 million passengers per year. In addition to Spain and the cross-border bus market, Alsa also operates in countries such as Morocco, with contracts in Rabat and Casablanca; Portugal, with urban lines in Porto and Lisbon; Saudi Arabia, or school buses in the United States, among others.

Alsa is preparing its assault on high-speed rail

Alsa is also exploring the possibility of expanding its business to rail transport. Through Alsa Rail, it develops an incipient activity in the operation of railway systems and in the design of projects for trams and light rail, conventional and automatic subways, and peri-urban and suburban railways. Recently, it has partnered with the Andalusian company Eco Rail to explore the possibility of operating some of the high-speed lines that are going to hit the market in Spain in the second phase of the sector’s liberalization process recently launched by the infrastructure manager. Adif.

Abroad, a railway operator led by the Cosmen, Evolyn, has agreed to buy twelve high-speed trains from Alstom to begin operating from 2025 in the Eutotunnel that links France with the United Kingdom under the English Channel.