Vossloh and VR Track found two joint ventures in Finland

Vossloh and VR Track, a subsidiary of the Finnish state-owned railway company VR Group, form two joint ventures. Together with the partner, Vossloh will operate three switch production locations as well as a long welded rail production. Vossloh will take on a 60 percent stake of each joint venture. Signing of the contracts took place in May, closing of the transactions will presumably be in the middle of this year. The estimated annual turnover of the two joint ventures amounts to €20 million to €30 million with operationally positive income contributions already in 2015.

With the joint ventures Vossloh considerably increases its value added in the Customized Modules business division in Finland and internationalizes the activities of the Lifecycle Solutions division into a market that is characterized by an elaborate railway investment strategy. Overall, the transactions follow the strategic goal of Vossloh to further strengthen its position in selected attractive rail infrastructure markets.

Dr. h.c. Hans Martin Schabert, CEO of Vossloh AG: "By forming the joint ventures with VR Track, we are improving our access to the demanding Finnish market and lay an important foundation for accelerated growth in our core business divisions in Northern Europe. We look forward to further intensifying the co-operation with our experienced long-term business partner, VR Track".

Ville Saksi, CEO of VR Track adds: "With Vossloh, we have found an adept and renowned rail technology specialist for the joint and successful development of the switch systems and rail infrastructure service activities. Our existing successful business relationship will be expanded and further strengthened through the joint ventures."

The switch business will be integrated into Vossloh's Customized Modules division, which provides individualized infrastructure modules. Vossloh is contributing its existing switch systems assets in Finland. The welding facility will become a part of Lifecycle Solutions, the division of Vossloh that provides comprehensive rail services and supplements the two other core divisions by a range of specialized services.

About Vossloh Group

Vossloh is a global player in the rail technology markets. The core business is rail infrastructure. In addition, the Group is active in the areas of rolling stock and electric buses. Under the umbrella of Vossloh AG and since January 1, 2015, these activities have been allocated to the four divisions Core Components, Customized Modules, Lifecycle Solutions and Transportation. In financial year 2014, Vossloh generated sales of €1.32 billion with more than 5,700 employees.