EUROPE: HSH Nordbank and KfW IPEX-Bank sold their shares in rolling stock leasing company Railpool to funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management on May 9. The price was not disclosed. The two banks founded Railpool as an equally-owned joint venture in 2008, and will continue to act as lenders to the company.
‘We plan significant investments in new, innovative vehicles, the expansion of our excellent team as well as the internationalisation of our business’, said Railpool Managing Director Torsten Lehnert. ‘As we continue to offer our customers modern, interoperable locomotives with an attractive full-service package, we are very pleased to welcome Oaktree as an excellent partner, who will support us strategically and financially’.
An order has been placed for five Siemens Vectron locomotives, and negotiations are being held with several manufacturers for at least 50 additional locomotives.
Los Angeles based Oaktree had US$86·2bn in assets under management as of March 31. ‘With the investment in Railpool we are happy to expand our involvement in the transport sector, and help to take advantage of future growth opportunities in the leasing market for rail vehicles, said Hermann T Dambach, Managing Director of Oaktree Germany.
