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Post by ThinLizzy on Feb 8, 2023 7:58:44 GMT
From CBW:
BREAKING NEWS
FirstGroup plc has today announced that it has signed an agreement to purchase Ensign Bus Company Limited.
The group say that the acquisition of the Ensignbus business will not only provide a number of synergies and value accretive growth opportunities in the B2B and bus vehicle dealership markets, but it will also enhance the Group’s local commercial bus operations in Essex.
In addition to its commercial operations, Ensignbus has a vehicle refurbishment and re-sale business that purchases used vehicles and refurbishes to modern standards before re-selling. First Bus say it will benefit them and the wider UK bus industry as the oldest, most polluting diesel buses are taken out of service. It is anticipated that the market for the resale of lower emission used diesel vehicles will continue to remain robust in the medium term, followed by the emergence of a similar market for the resale of zero emission vehicles.
Peter Newman, Ensignbus Chairman, said: “I want to thank all of our employees at Ensignbus for their ongoing hard work to deliver great service for our passengers across all of our communities in Essex, and we will be supporting them fully as they move to their new employer. We’re pleased that First Bus, with their reputation for customer service, innovation and sustainability, will take the Ensignbus business forward as a going concern and we wish them a successful future. We will continue to serve our communities and operate our network as usual until the completion date.”
Completion of the acquisition is anticipated in the next few months subject to customary regulatory review.
The Ensignbus specialist heritage fleet is excluded from the transaction.
Look out for further details in next week's CBW.
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Post by Busboy105 on Feb 8, 2023 8:02:46 GMT
First will be back in London! (Well mainly for the Spurs shuttle but it's nice to see)
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Post by southlondon413 on Feb 8, 2023 8:33:48 GMT
I must say I’m mighty shocked, didn’t see this coming at all.
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Post by greenboy on Feb 8, 2023 8:35:10 GMT
I thought April fools had come early but it's true enough and there's quite a bit of negative comment about it, the heritage fleet isn't included.
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Post by danorak on Feb 8, 2023 9:03:05 GMT
I can see why they've decided this is the moment to sell up: Ensign has always been genuinely independent and the increased involvement of local authorities combined with a more difficult financial climate seems like a natural moment to stop. Not the first time they've sold!
I do wonder whether, unlike Ensign, First might use it to consider a re-entry to the London market. I'm sure TfL would appreciate another East London bidder.
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Post by wirewiper on Feb 8, 2023 9:18:41 GMT
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Post by WH241 on Feb 8, 2023 9:29:46 GMT
Wow that’s a shocker! Had to check the date at first in case it was April 1st.
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Post by WH241 on Feb 8, 2023 9:32:12 GMT
I wonder could we now see First returning to the TfL tender services? The Purfleet depot is very close to the A13 and could potentially tender for work in the Rainham and Romford area.
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Post by joefrombow on Feb 8, 2023 9:37:17 GMT
Terrible news , Ensign do a brilliant job best company in Essex will no doubt go downhill once the First standards and First management get their claws into it it's actually sad , Anyone who uses First Essex where buses are constantly cut out with no warning and just quite shambolic organisation like a twitter account that is run from up north somewhere with no knowledge of the local area etc not something good but all good things come to end , and who knows Ensign have made a successful business before and sold it off (Capital Citybus) and came back in to the game so who's to say they won't do it again .
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Post by southlondon413 on Feb 8, 2023 9:42:48 GMT
I can see why they've decided this is the moment to sell up: Ensign has always been genuinely independent and the increased involvement of local authorities combined with a more difficult financial climate seems like a natural moment to stop. Not the first time they've sold! I do wonder whether, unlike Ensign, First might use it to consider a re-entry to the London market. I'm sure TfL would appreciate another East London bidder. I can’t see First going for tendered work again in London, although the company we see today is on the surface very different from a decade ago. In the sense that this a smaller more UK focused business with a more devolved management structure. I’ve always found it a stark comparison in the sense that as rival Go Ahead got more structured and less devolved First went more devolved and less structured but I digress. I can though see First as using Ensign as a springboard to the more lucrative RRP market in London. Companies like Abellio seem to do quite well off it and Purfleet is well placed for RRP across London being practically on top of the M25. It’s an interesting purchase for them so I’m intrigued to see where it goes.
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Post by COBO on Feb 8, 2023 9:53:37 GMT
And maybe one day First London will be making a come back. Is Stagecoach and Arriva still up for sale?
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Post by SILENCED on Feb 8, 2023 9:57:26 GMT
And maybe one day First London will be making a come back. Is Stagecoach and Arriva still up for sale? Don't believe either is at present. Stagecoach was taken over by DWS, and DB say they have completed their sale of non-strategic parts of Arriva
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Post by tony4387 on Feb 8, 2023 10:01:15 GMT
I have seen that on another forum that as of January 19 2023 that DB are considering putting Arriva back on the market
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pilk
Conductor
Posts: 85
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Post by pilk on Feb 8, 2023 10:02:33 GMT
Well I don't think anybody saw this coming and it's hard to see anything positive about it as First Essex don't exactly have the best of reputations. Whether they'll enter the TfL market remains to be seen.
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Post by capitalomnibus on Feb 8, 2023 10:03:00 GMT
I have seen that on another forum that as of January 19 2023 that DB are considering putting Arriva back on the market That was always the plan for it to be put up when conditions are favourable
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