Ukraine, Leonardo postpones the sale of Wass and Oto Melara?
According to Reuters, Leonardo has shelved (for the moment) the sale of its two subsidiaries Oto Melara and Wass due to the Ukrainian crisis
Leonardo puts the sales plan of the two subsidiaries Oto Melara and Wass on standby due to the war in Ukraine.
This was reported on March 8 by Reuters , citing three sources familiar with the matter.
Last year the Italian defense and aerospace group had put up for sale the two controlled land and naval armaments (today the Defense Systems business unit).
Both the Franco-German consortium Knds and the Italian Fincantieri have expressed interest in the two divisions.
The negotiations to achieve the government's goals have been complex, according to the Reuters source, and the current crisis has made it difficult to continue the talks. "The issue is suspended due to the war," concluded one of the sources.
All the details awaiting today's presentation of the 2021 results, when the guidance for the current year will also be given.
THE MANIFESTATIONS OF INTEREST OF KNDS AND FINCANTIERI
According to journalistic reconstructions, the offer of Knds (650 million) exceeds that of Fincantieri (450 million, which can be increased to 550 million). For the offer by Fincantieri, a group controlled by Cdp Equity with 71.32%, there is talk of the need for a capital increase supported by its main shareholder Cdp .
But in a hearing at the Chamber's Defense and Productive Activities Committees at the end of December, the CEO of Leonardo Profumo underlined that the group will make a decision considering various aspects: not only the price offered, also the possibility of international cooperation.
"Knds is potentially an interesting partner because it has 75% of the Main battle tank program and does not compete with Leonardo on electronics," said Profumo, adding that Italy would benefit from being part of the European tank project of the future. Main Ground Combat System (Mgcs).
THE ROLE OF THE GOVERNMENT
But Reuters reminds that the Italian government, which controls both Leonardo (through the Mef at 30%) and Fincantieri, wants to have a say in the agreement.
The executive has in fact initiated an interminesterial table between Mef, Mise and Defense to closely monitor the sales process. This was announced by Defense Minister Lorenzo Guerini (Pd) in the Chamber at the end of November 2021.
In particular, Rome wants to have a role in a European-level consortium for land military equipment, in which some of the assets of Oto Melara and Wass could be folded.
ENHANCEMENT OF THE TWO ASSETS WITH THE RISES ON THE STOCK MARKET
Furthermore, with the increases that Leonardo is recording on the stock exchange , there is also the enhancement of the two assets Oto Melara and Wass. According to Il Sole 24 Ore , in a possible European industrial center that has been rumored in recent days, "Leonardo, instead of merely selling the two companies and their respective technologies, could participate in the project, together with the French and Germans, with a minority share , which could reach, according to market rumors, up to 15% ".
Therefore, the group headed by Alessandro Profumo could be a partner of the group without having to sell its subsidiaries, but simply a share. Thus, through Leonardo, the participation in the MGCS program with a share of 15% would thus emerge for Italy.
POLEMIC UNIONS
Finally, the trade unions and workers protest, worried that a foreign sale of Oto Melara and Wass could compromise employment in the four Italian plants involved.
“Thinking of selling the former Oto Melara to raise cash, and getting 15% of the next consortium for the next generation European tank in return, is unacceptable. Italy must return to a true industrial policy, it cannot think of selling such a strategic company. If the choices do not go in the direction we wish, we are ready to mobilize ” , complained last week Luca Comiti, provincial secretary of the CGIL, at the assembly of workers of the Leonardo plant in La Spezia with CGIL, CISL and UIL.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/innovazione/ucraina-leonardo-rimanda-la-cessione-di-wass-e-oto-melara/ on Thu, 10 Mar 2022 07:15:56 +0000.