Caisse des Dépôts is studying the possibility of privatizing Transdev

What if Caisse des Dépôts was no longer the majority shareholder of Transdev, one of the French public transport giants? According to information from the specialist magazine Mobilettre, confirmed at Figaro On Wednesday, the financial arm of the State which owns 66% of Transdev is studying this possibility. “ We are considering this possibilitywe say at La Caisse des Dépôts. But if the CDC were to fall below 50% in this company, this would be a privatization. This would therefore give rise to a competitive process. »

Clearly, Rethmann, who has 34% of the capital of Transdev, would not have a right of pre-emption, would not have priority, to take over the shares of the old lady from rue de Lille. However, the German family group has indicated that it would be interested if the opportunity presented itself. He entered the capital of Transdev at the beginning of 2019 by taking over the 30% that Veolia had in the company. It gained an additional 4% by bringing its public transport activities in Germany to Transdev.

Be careful, there is no question of the CDC leaving Transdev. She only wants to reduce her share in the capital of the public transport group. And it sets conditions so that the operation can be carried out. “ We want to continue to play an active role in the governance of Transdev and maintain its French roots. ”, we specify at the Caisse des Dépôts. We might think that leaving the group’s headquarters in France would be a condition sine qua non for a potential buyer. This would also provide social guarantees for staff based in France.

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Going international

If the CDC is studying the possibility of this privatization, it is because the public transport operator has become very international. In France, it now only achieves a little less than 30% of its sales. Symbol of this attraction for the open sea, in July, it won a contract worth more than four billion euros to operate the Melbourne tramway over the next nine years. And, in March, it bought First Transit which transports 300 million passengers per year in North America. This strong international exposure does not correspond to the vocation of the CDC, which is concerned with defending the general interest in France. In any case, if the operation goes through to completion, it will not be a second-rate privatization. Last year, Transdev achieved a turnover of 9.3 billion euros, an increase of 21%. And the group almost doubled its current operating profit to 169 million euros.