EFFIA becomes the leading shareholder in SAEMES, the second leading car park operator in Ile-de-France

EFFIA, Keolis’ car parking subsidiary and the second largest car park operator in France with more than 141,000 parking spaces in 350 car parks, has become the leading shareholder in SAEMES, with a stake of 33.27%. SAEMES, a semi-public company, operates parking facilities for the City of Paris.

EFFIA operates more than 30,000 parking spaces in the Ile-de-France region, and has now strengthened its position by joining forces with SAEMES, the number two operator in the region in terms of revenue (45 million euros for 25,000 parking spaces).

SAEMES operates a number of major car parks, including the Lyon-Méditerranée car park, the largest facility in Paris in terms of generated revenue.

The two companies will maintain their commercial independence but will be able to respond together to tender calls. They already jointly operate the Lyon-Diderot car park in Paris.

With this transaction, EFFIA has become the second leading shareholder in SAEMES, after the City of Paris, which has sold 26.50% of its shares in SAEMES, but still retains 50.06% of the total capital. EFFIA has also bought 6.77% of the National Council of Automobile Professions and the Paris Ile-de-France Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

”Acquiring this stake reflects EFFIA and the City of Paris'desire to secure a long-term strategic partnership with three objectives: to accelerate the growth of SAEMES; to share best practices and develop synergies; and to play a greater role in Ile-de-France, which represents 40% of the total French market. The focus will be on operating future park-and-ride facilities that will accompany the development of the 'Grand Paris Express' project,”explains Frédéric Baverez, EFFIA’s Chairman and CEO.

About Keolis

Keolis is one of the world’s leading public transport operators. The company is majority owned (70%) by the French state railway SNCF, the other shareholder being Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ). Present in 15 countries* with 60,000 employees, Keolis develops tailored mobility solutions (automatic metros, tramways, trains, buses, coaches, ferries, self-service bicycles) adapted to local environments. The Group offers solutions and services via its subsidiary, Kisio. It is also the second leading car park operator in France thanks to its subsidiary EFFIA. In 2014, Keolis transported 3 billion passengers and generated 5.6 billion euros in revenue.

• *originally present in France, Keolis has expanded its operations to Germany, Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, UAE, USA, India, Luxembourg, Norway, the Netherlands, UK and Sweden.