Fincantieri, Leonardo, tussle over acquisition ahead of French tie-up

By: Tom Kington

ROME — Italy's two state-controlled defense champions, Leonardo and Fincantieri, have fought an unusual battle over the acquisition of a smaller company as they jockey for position ahead of their expected integration of naval work with French industry.

Shipyard Fincantieri thought it had sewn up the purchase of Italian firm Vitrociset in August, only for Leonardo to snatch it from under its nose on Sept. 7, leaving the Italian government to step in to mediate.

The tussle between two firms that both answer to the Italian state and closely cooperate on naval programs around the world is due to new rivalry as both edge toward teaming on naval programs with France's Naval Group.

The Italo-French deal is still being thrashed out, but may see a 10 percent share swap between Naval Group and Fincantieri and joint export campaigns to reduce the fractured nature of the European shipbuilding industry.

The deal automatically involves Leonardo since it provides electronics, guns and radars for Fincantieri's ships. But Leonardo CEO Alessandro Profumo has expressed concerns that regarding ships built or marketed jointly by Fincantieri and the French, his systems may be overlooked in favor of those produced by Thales, which is a shareholder in Naval Group.

Full article: https://www.defensenews.com/industry/2018/09/14/fincantieri-leonardo-tussle-over-acquisition-ahead-of-french-tie-up