Benettons, Blackstone nearing takeover bid for infrastructure player Atlantia

[MILAN] The billionaire Benetton family and Blackstone Inc are nearing a takeover offer for Italian infrastructure giant Atlantia, in what could become the year's biggest deal, said sources.

The family's Edizione holding company, the US buyout firm and other investors may announce as early as Wednesday their plan to buy out and take private the company, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information.

Atlantia's minority shareholders, Singapore sovereign fund GIC and Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Torino (CRT), are expected to invest in a new company that the suitors plan to set up for the deal, the people said. The Benettons already own about 33 per cent of Atlantia.

Representatives for the Benettons, Blackstone and Fondazione CRT declined to comment. A spokesperson for GIC was not immediately available for comment.

Atlantia has an enterprise value of almost 65 billion euros (S$96.9 billion) including debt, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, meaning any takeover would be the biggest of the year so far. It would also rank as one of the biggest infrastructure deals of all time. Bloomberg News first reported on the deal last week.

Atlantia, which traces its roots to the late 90s privatisation of Italy's highway sector, now finds itself at a crossroads, as it is set to receive roughly 8 billion euros from the sale of its Autostrade highway unit. Italy's government forced Atlantia to sell the business in the aftermath of the deadly 2018 Genoa bridge collapse, which killed 43 people.

BLOOMBERG