REG-FirstGroup PLC: Statement re: Shortlist for East Midlands rail franchise <Origin Href="QuoteRef">FGP.L</Origin>

FirstgroupAnnouncement

01/03/2017 08:05

FIRSTGROUP PLC

Statement re: Shortlisting for East Midlands rail franchise competition

First Trenitalia East Midlands Rail Limited, the joint venture between
FirstGroup plc (‘FirstGroup’) and Trenitalia UK Limited
(‘Trenitalia’), has today been shortlisted by the Department for Transport
for the East Midlands rail franchise competition.

Commenting, Steve Montgomery, First Rail Managing Director said:

"We are partnering with Trenitalia to bid for the upcoming East Midlands rail
franchise. Both ourselves and Trenitalia have extensive expertise of running
commuter, regional and long distance services such as those that make up the
East Midlands franchise.

“We have a strong track record in delivering continued modernisation and
investment, alongside industry partners, through our rail operating companies
Great Western Railway, TransPennine Express and Rail Operator of the Year,
Hull Trains.

“Trenitalia’s knowledge will add further depth and understanding as we
develop our proposals to deliver passenger benefits that take full advantage
of the significant investment that government and the industry are making in
the region’s rail infrastructure. We look forward to reviewing the franchise
contract details and submitting an innovative and value for money bid which
will keep people moving and communities prospering across the East
Midlands.”

Commenting, Barbara Morgante, CEO of Trenitalia, said:

“We believe that the experience, competence, innovation and skills of
Trenitalia and FirstGroup, developed in international markets, represent a
perfect mix to run the East Midlands franchise together. Trenitalia is proud
and ready to bring all its competencies to the partnership, both from a
technical and commercial standpoint, developed in the highly competitive
Italian market.”

“In addition to the recent c2c acquisition, our participation in the East
Midlands bid confirms our strong commitment to the UK market. We look forward
to passengers benefiting from our track record and ability to innovate and
invest across all the rail transport value chain.”

Notes

1.   The next East Midlands franchise is due to start in November 2018 and
will encompass major infrastructure enhancements and improvements in the
franchise area.

2.   Both FirstGroup and Trenitalia hold 'Pre-Qualification Questionnaire
Passports' with DfT Rail Executive which shows that they have satisfied basic
financial and other competence criteria and allows them to submit franchise
bids to Government. In December 2015, Trenitalia became the first new entrant
to be awarded a PQQ Passport by the Department for Transport and since then is
pursuing a number of franchise opportunities.

Trenitalia is the passenger rail transportation company part of FS Italiane
Group, a major industrial player with an increasing international presence,
and growing profit (the net income rose +53.1% in 2015 over 2014). FS Group
runs 8,000 trains a day, serving 600 million passengers and carrying 50
million tons of freight a year, over a network exceeding 16,700 kilometres.
The group’s objective is to develop a large-scale mobility and logistics
project capable of contributing to the country’s economic growth. The
holding company, FS Italiane, controls companies active in specific core
businesses – all of which, in terms of safety levels and technological
standards, are European leaders. Trenitalia, the group’s rail transportation
company, is one of Europe’s top railway operators, and manages passenger
transport with its long haul connections, both on high speed (Frecciarossa)
and conventional lines, as well as regional and metropolitan services. On
February 13th 2017 Trenitalia completed the acquisition of the c2c franchise
from National Express. Other companies belonging to the FS Italiane Group
include RFI, Busitalia, Italferr, Mercitalia, Ferservizi, Italcertifer,
Centostazioni, GS Rail, FS Sistemi Urbani, Netinera Deutschland, TX Logistik
and Thello.

FirstGroup plc (LSE: FGP.L) is the leading transport operator in the UK and
North America. With £5.2 billion in revenues and 110,000 employees, we
transported around 2.2 billion passengers last year. Each of our five
divisions is a leader in its field: In North America, First Student is the
largest provider of student transportation with a fleet of around 47,000
yellow school buses, First Transit is one of the largest providers of
outsourced transit management and contracting services, while Greyhound is the
only nationwide operator of scheduled intercity coach services. In the UK,
FirstGroup is one of Britain's largest bus operators running a fleet of some
6,200 buses, and we are one of the country's most experienced passenger rail
operators, carrying around 140 million passengers last year.

Our vision is to provide solutions for an increasingly congested world...
keeping people moving and communities prospering.

Contacts at FirstGroup:
Faisal Tabbah, Head of Investor Relations
Stuart Butchers, Group Head of Media
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7725 3354

Contacts at Brunswick PR:
Michael Harrison / Andrew Porter, Tel: +44 (0) 20 7404 5959

Contacts at Trenitalia UK:
Giovanni Sanfelice di Monteforte, Tancredi, 07775 858152



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