To close the deal, Globalvia had to equal the bid submitted by the team composed of France's infrastructure investor InfraVia and Australia's investor Macquarie Group. The team reached in mid September, an agreement to buy 39.4 % of the asset for a total consideration of €108 million (US$1119 million).
This announcement comes after the Andalusian regional government, Junta de Andalucía, announced in early october that it will not exercise its right to acquire the asset.
The sellers are Spanish saving bank Cajamar and regional contractors Azvi, and Sando. The three companies will sell their shares as a package. Sepecifically, Cajamar will sell 18.86 %, Azvi 11.96 %, and Sando 8.57 %.
Once closed, Macquarie and InfraVia will become major shareholders in Metro Málaga, which will be also owned by the Andalusian regional government, Junta de Andalucía (23.69 %), Globalvia (15.31 %) FCC (10.01%), Comsa-Emte (10.56 %) and Grupo Vera (1.04 %).
The share capital of Metro Málaga is €136.5 million, and the 39.4% stake is set to be sold for €108 million, which means approximately 100% profit on the shares.
The project dates back to 2004, when the Regional Government of Andalusia awarded the construction and subsequent operation of the infrastructure to the concession holder Metro de Málaga S.A. The development of the project required an investment of €636 million, financed through a loan from the European Investment Bank. The operation of the passenger transport service will be carried out by Metro de Málaga S.A. until the end of 2042.