AUSTRALIA'S MACQUARIE BANK LTD SAID ON FRIDAY IT WAS BUYING BRITISH BUS AND TRAIN OPERATOR STAGECOACH GROUP PLC'S LONDON BUS OPERATIONS FOR 263.6 MILLION POUNDS ($486 MILLION), REUTERS REPORTED. MACQUARIE SAID IN A STATEMENT STAGECOACH LONDON'S "NETWORK OF DEPOTS CREATES A UNIQUE FRANCHISE WITHIN ITS REGION, AND THE BUSINESS BENEFITS FROM STRONG CASHFLOW VISIBILITY THROUGH CONTRACTED BUS ROUTE CONCESSIONS". STAGECOACH LONDON'S 1,300 BUSES AND 4,300 STAFF RUN OVER 80 BUS ROUTES PROVIDING 300 MILLION PASSENGER JOURNEYS PER YEAR WITHIN AND FROM LONDON, PRINCIPALLY UNDER CONTRACT FROM TRANSPORT FOR LONDON. STAGECOACH SAID IT WOULD MAKE AN ESTIMATED CONSOLIDATED GAIN OF 120 MILLION POUNDS ON THE DISPOSAL, ADDING IT WAS TO CONTRIBUTE 60 MILLION POUNDS TO A NEW PENSION SCHEME FOR STAGECOACH LONDON MEMBERS. CHIEF EXECUTIVE BRIAN SOUTER SAID: "AFTER ASSESSING MACQUARIE'S OFFER AND THE PROSPECTS FOR THE LONDON BUS OPERATIONS, WE CONCLUDED THAT THE DISPOSAL WAS IN THE BEST INTERESTS OF OUR SHAREHOLDERS." STAGECOACH WILL LOOK FOR FURTHER ORGANIC GROWTH AND BOLT-ON ACQUISITIONS FOR ITS REMAINING BRITISH BUS BUSINESS, WHERE IT HAS EXPANDED IN MERSEYSIDE, YORKSHIRE, LINCOLNSHIRE AND TAYSIDE OVER THE PAST YEAR, HE SAID.
