Japanese equipment maker and engineer IHI will inject €300m into Italian construction group Astaldi to take 13% of Astaldi’s voting rights and 18% of its share capital.
The Osman Gazi Bridge in Turkey (Wikimedia Commons/Vapurcu)
The pair will also team up to win big infrastructure projects.
The deal is part of Astaldi’s debt reduction plan, which also includes refinancing and asset sales. It wants to cut its debt by €1.6bn this year and €1bn next year, Reuters reports.
Astaldi and IHI have previously worked together on the Osman Gazi Bridge in Turkey (pictured), the world’s 4th longest suspension bridge, and will build the Braila Bridge Project over the Danube in Romania.
Astaldi said in a statement: "Through the strategic partnership, Astaldi and IHI will consolidate their integrated capacity for construction of large-scale infrastructure projects with a view to successfully responding to market needs."
IHI said the deal should reflect "each company’s complementary business strengths and skills such as IHI group’s engineering capabilities of bridge construction and Astaldi’s rich experience of BOT/PPP projects."
Astald’si majority shareholder Finast will retain 50.2% of the voting rights.
