MADRID (Reuters) – Basque steel maker Sidenor has hired investment bank Alantra to buy up to a 29.9% stake in Spanish train maker Talgo, news website El Confidencial reported on Tuesday, citing several sources close to the matter.
Sidenor would buy the stake from investment fund Trilantic, which owns 40.2% of Talgo, El Confidencial said.
Spanish market rules force investors who buy 30% or more in a listed company to make a public tender offer.
Sidenor, Alantra, Trilantic and Talgo did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The move comes three months after Hungarian consortium Ganz-Mavag withdrew a tender offer for Talgo following the Spanish government’s opposition to the deal.
Last month, Sidenor told Talgo it was interested in buying part or all of Talgo shares.
Privately owned Sidenor is headquartered in the Basque Country and runs several steel mills in northern Spain.
(Reporting by Inti Landauro; Editing by Jan Harvey)
