The family Gavio catches Salini on the counterattack and convenes an extraordinary meeting with a bittersweet taste for the Roman builder: the majority shareholder has decided to open the board to minorities, beating Salini on its own ground after the latter had decided to present a new business plan on April 23, a few days before the next shareholders' meeting, with the aim of convincing minority shareholders to support the new line.
The change of statute should partially repay Salini who, however, has already shown himself to be skeptical of the new governance plan: "The creation of a national champion in major works and concessions, with a strong international presence, cannot be reduced to changes, however marginal, in the corporate governance arrangements" .
Nonetheless, it will be Salini himself to enjoy a consistent presence on the board of directors, currently the prerogative of the majority with 14 seats out of 15. The remodulation of the representation would instead see Gavio's share fall back to 10 seats, leaving the remaining five to minorities. Three would go to Salini, who has come to hold 25,3% of the shares.
The unknown, now, is whether the Roman builder will consider himself satisfied by the new, more transparent and representative governance, or whether he will decide to continue the climb to present himself at the meeting, on May 3, with a share of 29,9%, tied with Gavio , to explore the possibility of a decisive thrust.
The first reactions seem to indicate the intention to bet equally, in the meeting, on the presentation of the industrial plan: "The Salini group confirms its firm determination to implement an industrial project that can guarantee growth, development and employment for the company and for the country, as well as value for all shareholders. The project, which will shortly be presented to the financial community and the press, is based on clear strategies, expertise and work regardless of easy solutions or acquired position annuities".
Salini's original intention was to tempt the minority shareholders with a "sweetener": that of selling the Brazilian motorway network Ecorodovias, in which Impregilo owns 29,24%, no longer considered a strategic asset since the infrastructure are fully operational and only guarantee toll revenues and not new industrial contracts. A possible sale of the network would bring liquidity back into cash with which to pay dividends for shareholders and relaunch new investments.
But that is not all: Impregilo and Salini would occupy different markets (Africa and South America), and would constitute the largest Italian industrial group in the construction sector, with a turnover that would exceed three billion euros, however concentrated on a homogeneous sector. On the contrary, in the Gavio group precisely those motorway concessions that Salini no longer considers a strategic asset represent a very substantial share of the business (38%).
Two very different visions of the company "mission".: while Salini advocates not only a capital strengthening, but also a strengthening of the group's vocation, the risk is that - in Gavio's designs - a colossus will form, but heterogeneous in the structure of activities.
Whatever happens, the change of statute will have a positive impact on the governance of the group: whoever, between the two duelists, will be defeated, will in any case have the guarantee of adequate representation on the board.
