Abertis invests €125 million in A4 Holding and now controls 85% of its Italian subsidiary

Barcelona (ACN).- The Catalan company Abertis reached an agreement with minority shareholders of its Italian subsidary, A4 Holdings, to buy an additional 22.52% of the business' assets. The group will pay a total amount of €125 million, 89€ million by the end of July, 2017 and the final €36 million by the end of January, 2018. As a result of the transaction, Abertis will now control 85.36% of A4 Holding, reinforcing its growth strategy and, in particular, its business in Italy, an attractive market for the group. 

The company said in a press release that the deal “demonstrates Abertis' ability to grow internationally in an attractive way while maintaining its financial discipline”. The purchase also fits with its management strategy which, according to the company, “allows investments in assets it knows well and where it faces no competition, reducing its operational risk profile”.

Abertis has been present in Italy since September, 2016, when it acquired 51.4% of A4 Holding. The Italian company manages the A4 toll road, known popularly as ‘La Serenissima’, which connects the cities of Brescia and Padova with three lanes in each direction. It is one of the country's higher density toll roads. A4 Holding also operates the A31, the Autostada della Valdastico, which connects the towns of Piovene, Rocchette, and Badia Polesine. Together, these two toll roads represent 235 kilometers in the region of Veneto, one of the most prosperous in Italy.