Fincantieri signs STX France share purchase agreement

Cruise ship under construction at STX France

MAY 19, 2017 — Fincantieri S.p.A. reports that it has now signed today a share purchase agreement for the acquisition of 66.66% of the share capital of shipbuilder STX France from its current shareholder STX Europe AS .

It says that the agreement entails a purchase price of EUR 79.5 million (about $89 million), to be paid through available financial resources and is subject to customary conditions for this kind of transactions.

Fincantieri says “it continues to negotiate with the French State for the finalization of the shareholders’ agreement for STX France in accordance with the Heads of Terms signed on April 12.”

French media report that under that agreement Fincantieri would take over 48% of the capital of the Saint-Nazaire shipyards, with the balance of the 66.6% actually being held by an independent Italian investor, Fundazione CR (Cassa di Risparmio) Trieste. On the French side, the State, which holds a third of the capital of STX France, would retain a right of veto and the French public military constructor DCNS will take a 12% stake in the venture.

Be that as it may, Fincantieri said today that “through this industrial partnership, Fincantieri and STX France will create a global leader in all high-tech shipbuilding industry’s sectors. The perfect complementarity of Fincantieri and STX France cruise activities and products would allow the two companies to serve all the clients and end-markets and to generate value not only for the shareholders, but also for the employees and the respective subcontractors’ networks.”