AAE Holding AG owner Andreas Goer has bought a 70% stake in wagon bogie maker ELH Eisenbahnlaufwerke Halle GmbH & Co KG, through Swiss-based G&S Rail Investments GmbH. The purchase price was not disclosed, and ELH's previous owner Michael Schnaufer will retain a 30% stake in the business.
'After difficult years in 2005 and 2006, ELH needed a strong investor in order not just to maintain but to expand its activities', said Schnaufer. 'Andreas Goer shares this vision, thus enabling negotiations to be concluded in a constructive manner in a short period of time.'
ELH will initially be managed jointly by Schnaufer and Dr Eckart Lehmann. who has been Managing Director of Talbot, Knorr-Bremse and AAE as well as President of the Association of the Railway Industry in Germany.
'The European rail freight market needs strong producers', said Goer. 'I am convinced that this investment will provide a platform for further opportunities.'
