ZURICH, Switzerland, Dec. 17, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Gate Gourmet and Iberia have signed a Letter of Intent for the purchase by Gate Gourmet of 70 percent of the shares of the airline catering company Iber-Swiss, presently owned by Iberia. Gate Gourmet already owns the other 30 percent of the shares. The value of the sale amounts to 23.5 million Euro. The transaction remains subject to the approval by the Competition Authorities.
This agreement also forms the basis for a worldwide 7-year contract by which Gate Gourmet will provide exclusive catering, inflight and supply chain management services to the Iberia Group around the globe. Iber-Swiss caters for the passengers of the Iberia Group and another 30 airline companies each day. Last year, Iber-Swiss produced more than 14 million meals for almost 140,000 flights.
With this acquisition, Gate Gourmet expects to gain annual revenues of 80 million Euro. Guy Dubois, the Chief Financial Officer of Gate Gourmet: "We are very pleased to have reached an agreement with Iberia, one of the most successful airlines in the world. It will strengthen our long-term relationship and provide additional opportunities for Gate Gourmet in Europe, Latin America and the United States. With the signing of the 7-year global contract, Gate Gourmet will be able to deliver innovative and comprehensive in-flight solutions to the Iberia Group. This clearly reflects our ability to service complex customer requirements on a worldwide basis."
As the minority shareholder of Iber-Swiss, Gate Gourmet has been managing the Iber-Swiss kitchens in Spain. The Madrid and Malaga kitchens have been managed by Gate Gourmet since 1985 and the Barcelona kitchen, which was built and inaugurated in 1999, since its opening.
Note to Editors:
Gate Gourmet is a world leading airline catering company. Its turnover in 2002 amounted to CHF 2.8 billion. With the world's most important airlines among its customers, Gate Gourmet produces over 195 million meals per year and employs a staff of about 22,000 in its 120 flight kitchens. This international enterprise is located in 31 countries on all continents and through its non-catering divisions also offers supply chain management and in-flight operations management (egatematrix), inspection and validation services (Gatesafe) and in-flight equipment sourcing (FiveOceans). The company was created from Swissair's in-house catering operations in 1992 and has grown through the acquisition of other caterers, including Aero-Chef, SAS Service Partner, Varig flight kitchens and British Airways flight kitchens. With the acquisition of Dobbs Catering in 1999, Gate Gourmet doubled in size and expanded its business in the United States. In 2002, the U.S. investment group Texas Pacific Group (TPG) became the main investor in Gate Gourmet.
Further Information: Connie Voigt Director Corporate Communications Gate Gourmet Switzerland GmbH Head Offices Zurich Media Line: +41 43 812 7117 E-mail: cvoigt@gategourmet.com
The press release can be downloaded from the following link: http://hugin.info/133806/R/928693/126943.pdf
Gate Gourmet International Corporate Communications CH-8058 Zurich Airport Switzerland Phone: +41 1 812 71 17 Fax: +41 1 810 91 75 E-mail:cvoigt@gategourmet.com www.gategourmet.com