In May 201
5, funds managed by Federated Hermes Infrastructure acquired a 10% stake in Eurostar International Limited (“Eurostar”). In April 2022, Eurostar was combined with THI Factory SA (“Thalys”) through the creation of Eurostar Group, a newly incorporated company headquartered in Brussels, which owns 100% of Eurostar and Thalys following the transaction.
Funds managed by the Federated Hermes Infrastructure hold a 6.44% stake in Eurostar Group. Eurostar and Thalys operate high speed train services connecting the UK, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany. In 2019 Eurostar and Thalys together transported 18m passengers. The combined entity is now Western Europe’s largest high-speed international network and is expected to expand the continent’s rail transport capacity and meet growing demand for sustainable passenger mobility. Both companies will operate under a single brand: Eurostar. Federated Hermes Infrastructure’s investment in Eurostar Group (and originally in Eurostar) is part of our Value Added strategy where we seek to invest in mature assets with a strong market position.
Eurostar Group’s other shareholders are Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer Français (“SNCF”) (55.75%), Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer Belges (“SNCB”) (18.5%), the publicly owned national rail operators of France and Belgium respectively, and Caisse de Dépôt et Placement du Québec (“CDPQ”) (19.31%). SNCF and SNCB are highly experienced rail operators and have played a key role in the development of both Eurostar and Thalys.