Work is in full swing on the Atlantia construction site, determined to present itself to the shareholders, who will meet in assembly on May 29, with the first tangible signs of a resumption of dialogue with the government. Judging by the tone of the interview released this morning byCEO of Aspi, Roberto Tommasi, however, there is the feeling that an agreement is still to come: the Five Stars, perched on the request for revocation, oppose the compromise reached with the Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Paola De Micheli.
And so the government has not yet responded to the proposal made by Aspi (2,9 billion euros) even if the dossier could arrive at the table of one of the next councils of ministers. The agreement, Tommasi points out, is necessary to have access to the credit market and thus be able to allow the go-ahead for investments which, the manager assures, will guarantee a multiplier of 2,5 times. In this regard, the manager confirms that he wants to make use of the state guarantee provided for by the Liquidity Decree (1,2 billion for salaries and investments) and hopes to be able to unblock the credit line with Cassa depositi e prestiti.
But the resumption of talks for the sale of a share, between 40 and 49%, of Telepass contributes above all to boosting the share, positive albeit only slightly in a market in full adjustment after the leap forward on the eve. The objective is not only to raise cash (the price should be between 1,5 and 2 billion euros) but to secure a partner capable of bringing know-how and technological capabilities. Before the negotiations stopped at the end of 2019, a price between 2,1 and 2,3 billion was assumed in terms of enterprise value (100%). The first non-binding offers should arrive in the coming weeks.
Among the possible interlocutors are: leading operators: Partners Group fund, the US group Apax, a consortium made up of Warburg Pincus and Neuberger Berman and a consortium with the private equity firms Bain Capital and Advent.
Even so, Atlantia is trying to leave a horrible season behind. Waiting for the node of the reorganization of Aspi's capital to unravel which, thanks to the drop in traffic, seems set to close the accounts with a loss of 300 million also for 2020. In line with the 2019 deficit, with a loss of 282 millions.
