American-owned Arriva revenue hits £2.46bn

NORTH East transport giant Arriva saw total revenues reach €2.46bn in the year it was snapped up by new American owners, accounts show.

- COREENA FORD

The Sunderland-based company one of the region's largest businesses was last year sold to I Squared Capital, a Miami-based group that invests in global infrastructure and has assets around the world, for a reported £1.4bn.

German national rail firm Deutsche Bahn AG announced in 2023 year that it had agreed a deal to sell the bus and train operator to the US group, but the deal didn't complete until June 2024, following approval from the Deutsche Bahn supervisory board and the German Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport.

Now accounts for the 2024 financial year have been released, showing how operating profit was €127m, while pretax profit was €156m.

The year also saw the firm make capital investments worth €285m. The accounts showed contract revenues, which mainly relate to amounts due from government bodies, was €1.76bn, while passenger revenue, from ticket sales, was €665m.