Salini Impregilo presents offer for Astaldi

(ANSA) - Rome, February 14 - Infrastructure giant Salini Impregilo said Thursday that it has made an offer to take a controlling stake in troubled construction group Astaldi. The proposal is for a cash capital increase of 225 million euros for 65% of Astaldi (after the capital increase), which would become an "essentially debt-free company".
    "The transaction represents an opportunity to create one of the leading global EPC operators with a combined EPC order book of around €33 billion and more than 45,000 employees," Salini Impregilo said. The statement said the proposal would see Astaldi selling off its concessions arm, including the third Bosphorus bridge project and the Gebze-Orhangazi-Izmi highway in Turkey, to pay unsecured creditors.