French bus venture cost Swiss Post at least CHF65 million
The total cost of Swiss Post’s attempt to enter the French market in 2004 amounts to over CHF65 million ($65.3 million) – significantly more than thought, reports a Swiss newspaper.
The calculation comes from Sunday newspaper Le Matin Dimanche. In addition to the CHF19 million loss announced on Monday by Swiss PostExternal link from the sale of CarPostal France to SNCF subsidiary Keolis, the newspaper adds the CHF25 million debt waiver between 2010 and 2012, plus the CHF7 million that the company has agreed to pay to settle a dispute amicably with three French carriers.
Le Matin Dimanche also includes losses resulting from the conversion of currencies at the time of sale, which amounts to CHF14 million. The actual bill for the French debacle could be even higher, notes the newspaper, because Swiss Post does not provide all the figures.
Post spokesman François Furer told the newspaper that the current management regrets the attempt to enter the French market, but CarPostal Frances’s situation is “healthy and competitive. Its sale … offers a long-term perspective for the company and its 1,200 employees”.
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