The Railway Systems Division entered into two joint ventures during the business year 2010/11, which are of significant strategic importance with regard to long-term growth perspectives and are intended to expand the global market and technology leadership of the voestalpine Group in the turnout manufacturing sector by giving it a focused presence in very dynamic market regions outside Europe.
The activities that were reported in detail in the previous letters to shareholders for the business year 2010/11 pertain to the establishment of a turnout manufacturing joint venture in Turkey in the first quarter of 2010/11 (a joint venture with the Turkish State Railways and the steel manufacturer Kardemir under voestalpine management) and, in the third quarter, to the establishment of the first foothold in Saudi Arabia. The company that was established together with a well-regarded local partner from the railway technology sector under the technical management of voestalpine will develop the Saudi Arabian market and, subsequently, numerous suburban and metro projects throughout the entire Gulf region. Production launch is planned for the calendar year 2011.
After completion of the run-up phase, revenue of the joint venture in Turkey should be about EUR 30 million, while that of the Saudi Arabian joint venture should be at around EUR 10 to 15 million.
Otherwise, there were no other acquisitions or significant divestments in the business year 2010/11.