VR Group making major rail and bus acquisition in Sweden

VR Group is acquiring Swedish rail and bus company Arriva Sverige.

Arriva Sverige – part of Arriva Group, owned by Deutsche Bahn – operates urban transport in Stockholm and regional transport in southern and southeastern Sweden.

Through the acquisition, VR Group aims to grow and strengthen its position and competitiveness as an urban transport operator and boost the electrification of the Swedish bus transport market.

After the acquisition, Arriva Sverige will become an independent company under VR Group.

VR Group says it aims to strengthen its accumulated expertise in clean urban transport in Sweden, and it will become a significant transport operator in the country. Arriva Sverige has more than 170 million passengers per year, and the company is Sweden’s third-largest train operator and fourth-largest bus operator. The acquisition also means around 3,800 new employees for VR Group.

Johan Lindgren, CEO of Arriva Sverige said: “As a veteran in the transport business and a pioneer in climate-friendly commuting services VR Group can provide Arriva Sverige with great growth opportunities. We look forward to the opportunity to utilize VR Group’s expertise and to developing our electric bus traffic together with VR Group.”

In light of the acquisition, VR Group will focus on providing “climate-smart traffic” development and will use the purchase to enable access to the Swedish tendering market.

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