SMBC Leasing has joined a consortium comprised
of investment funds and the train manufacturer Bombardier currently
bidding for a major stake in the Thameslink programme.
The other members of the consortium include
Deutsche Bank-owned fund RREEF, infrastructure fund Amber, Serco as
well as Bombardier.
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If it wins the bid for the project – which is
currently being procured by the Department for Transport – the
consortium will lease 1,200 new carriages over 20 years via a
special purpose vehicle (SPV) to the operator of the Thameslink
franchise. The SPV, in which each member of the consortium owns an
equity stake, is currently being set up by the consortium. RREEF is
understood to own the largest share in the SPV with a circa 40%
stake.
A rival consortium led by Siemens is also
bidding for the Thameslink project. Leasing Life
understands its members include 3i Infrastructure Fund and
Innisfree, the UK infrastructure investment group.
The rolling stock project is part of the much
larger Thameslink programme involving the building of new stations
in and around London and upgrades to existing ones, as well as the
laying down of new railway track. The programme was given the
greenlight by the UK’s transport minister Philip Hammond in
November this year.
The programme’s leasing part, which is valued
at around £1.5bn, is one of the largest deals of its kind in UK
rail leasing history. The trains will run between Bedford and
Brighton and, according to a recent statement by Hammond, will
“virtually double the number of north-south trains running through
central London at peak times”.
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By GlobalDataAt the end of March next year, the Department
for Transport is due to announce the winning bidder for the rolling
stock part of the Thameslink programme. Besides leasing the trains,
the winning consortium will also be responsible for the maintenance
of the trains over a 30-year concession period, as well as the
construction of two new maintenance depots.
Sources said that the government was keen to
use a leasing model for the project, even though a private finance
initiative (PFI) framework is being used for the Crosssrail
project, a similar scheme to Thameslink involving the provision of
new rolling stock and infrastructure for lines across London.
SMBC Leasing has a solid background in rail
leasing in the UK. In 2008, as part of a joint venture with
National Australia Bank, it was awarded a contract by Transport for
London to lease 54 Class 378 units for use on five London
overground lines. These included the East London Line, the Gospel
Oak to Barking Line, the North London Line, the West London Line
and the Watford DC Line.
News of the involvement by investment funds in
the Thameslink programme follows the recent announcement that an
investment fund owned by the Australian bank Macquarie has bought a
stake in the Russian rolling stock leasing company Brunswick
Rail.
It is understood that delays are likely to
take place to the procurement of trains for the Thameslink
programme with stock now not expected to be brought into service
until 2017.
Under the revised proposals the rolling stock
will be introduced between 2014 and 2017, with the bulk coming into
service in between 2015 and late 2017. This is a change from
original proposals under which the stock was expected to be fully
procured by 2015.
The reason for the delay is understood to be
linked to unexpectedly costs involved in the building of
infrastructure at London Bridge station. The changes to the
procurement process have meant that the two bidders for the project
now have to submit slightly revised tenders.
Brendan Malkin
