Porterbrook - Bringing home the bratwurst!

This from Tommy Atkins...

Exciting news from the nation's favourite ROSCO...

Porterbrook Leasing has signed a contract with LNWR to repaint 72 Class 150/2 vehicles operated by Arriva Trains Wales, valued at £1M

With franchising stalled this is indeed good news for the UK's increasingly beleaguered rolling stock supply chain!

But what's this?

The 150/2s are operated by Arriva Trains Wales - part of Arriva - owned by Deutsche Bahn.

They will be repainted by LNWR - owned by Arriva - part of Deutsche Bahn.

And the job is being funded by Porterbrook - part-owned by Deutsche Bank.

Deutschland über alles indeed!

Porterbrook flogged

***Porterbrook Leasing Company Limited has announced that a consortium of investors including Antin Infrastructure Partners (the BNP Paribas sponsored infrastructure fund), Deutsche Bank and Lloyds TSB has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of the Company from Abbey National.

Completion of the purchase is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to take place before the end of 2008.***

Sources at the Rosco deny that Deutsche Bank's interest has anything to do with Porterbrook's 'DE1' postcode.

UPDATE: The Deutsche Bank led consortium will pay £1.4bn for the Rosco - the same price Abbey paid to Stagecoach when it acquired Porterbrook in 2000