Siemens is ready to pay one billion euros for MerMec, an Italian multinational company founded in 1970, a global leader in the design and development of advanced railway technologies.
This was revealed by Bloomberg, citing sources familiar with the negotiations, according to which the German multinational is working with consultants to study the operation.
Siemens, with a market capitalization of about 209 billion euros and the leading German industrial group by market value, is active not only in railway production but also in industrial automation sectors, Bloomberg recalls. In recent years, the German industrial conglomerate has divested its energy division and reduced its stake in the medical equipment unit, focusing on high-margin sectors such as software and artificial intelligence.
The acquisition, which is expected to be announced this week, would strengthen the technology and software division of Siemens Mobility, the group’s division responsible for train construction, reports Reuters. Not to forget that in September 2025, Bari-based Mermec had already denied rumors of a possible acquisition by Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane, reaffirming its intention to continue growing with the current ownership structure.
All the details.
WHAT MERMEC IS AND WHAT IT DOES
Described by Sole 24 Ore as “an excellence of the Italian railway industry (diagnostic trains and signaling systems),” MerMec, headquartered in Monopoli (Bari), is a company specialized in railway signaling and communication systems with about 900 employees. With a share capital of 5 million euros, the company is wholly controlled by Angelo Holding, a private Italian technology holding company founded by Vito Pertosa, who is also the CEO. The company specializes in signaling systems, data analysis and management software, as well as track measurement and inspection systems.
The industrial daily also recalled last autumn that “Mermec boasts orders worldwide, but its main client is the FS group. Starting precisely from the PNRR contract for the new 2.5 billion euro Ermts signaling system, involving all the giants of the sector (Hitachi, Alstom).” Among its projects is a new railway signaling system for the Channel Tunnel between Great Britain and France.
GOVERNANCE
The company’s board of directors, chaired by founder Vito Pertosa, includes Carlo Moser, Chiara Pertosa (daughter of Vito Pertosa and CEO of Sitael, part of the Angel Investments group), Angelo Matteo Pertosa, and Paolo Pandozy.
THE FIGURES
Mermec closed the financial year ending December 31, 2024, with a net profit of 13.4 million euros.
In 2024, the Group recorded revenues of 432.7 million euros, up from 287.5 million in 2023. The increase is also due to the inclusion in the consolidation perimeter, between August and December 2024, of the French companies Mont Saint Michel, Compagnie des Signaux, and Mer Mec Deutschland, which contributed revenues of 61.3 million euros.
EBITDA rose to 75 million euros, compared to 49 million in 2023, mainly due to volume growth and the first consolidation of the Mont Saint Michel group from July 31, 2024.
In 2024, Operating Income stood at 40.4 million euros, an increase of 15.6 million compared to 24.8 million recorded in 2023. The growth is mainly due to the improvement in EBITDA, which increased by 26 million euros. However, the increase was partially offset by higher amortization and write-downs, up by 6.4 million due to the commissioning of some development projects completed in 2024, and by increased provisions for risks and uses, which grew by about 4 million.
Overall, the order backlog amounts to 3.4 billion euros.
The financial position as of December 31, 2024, is negative by 39.1 million euros, compared to a negative 3.2 million at the end of 2023. The deterioration occurred despite strong operational cash generation during the year, amounting to 107.5 million euros, which helped support the financial commitment related to the acquisition of CSEE, explains the company’s financial report.
THE ACQUISITION OF THE FORMER HITACHI RAIL STS FRANCE
On July 31, 2024, the Group finalized the acquisition of the former Hitachi Rail STS France company, now Compagnie des signaux (CSEE), operating worldwide in signaling technology. The acquisition was made through a newly established French company, Mont Saint Michel S.a.S. (MSM), majority-owned by Mer Mec S.p.A. at 78.72%, which acquired the entire capital of Hitachi Rail STS France, now CSEE, which boasts a long and important history in providing signaling systems in France and holds the former Hitachi signaling activities in Germany and the United Kingdom, with a total of about 550 employees and revenues of approximately 145 million euros in 2024, consolidated for 61 million in the 2024 financial year starting August 1.
THE GERMAN CONTRACT WITH DEUTSCHE BAHN
In this context, during 2024 the Group won important contracts both nationally and internationally characterized by a significant innovation component, confirming its technological capability, notably the award in Germany with the domestic network operator Deutsche Bahn (DB) of a long-term contract for the delivery and installation of digitized control systems worth over one billion euros.
DENIAL OF THE ACQUISITION BY FS LAST AUTUMN
Last autumn, MerMec had already denied rumors about a possible acquisition by Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane. In a statement released by managing director Ruggiero Delcuratolo, the Monopoli-based company described the hypothesis of an agreement with the public railway group as “once again unfounded.” Delcuratolo specified that Mer Mec remains open to new capital entries, industrial partnerships, and acquisitions, with the aim of supporting the company’s growth and international expansion. “That’s why we are in talks,” the manager explained, referring also to FS and Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, “without any due diligence,” thus denying media reports about preliminary checks in view of an acquisition. “What is certain,” the statement concluded, “is that in the coming years Mermec will continue to grow under the current control.”
SIEMENS’ STRATEGY WITH MERMEC
Less than a year later, a new sales opportunity has emerged for the company in Vito Pertosa’s group.
The potential acquisition of MerMec would strengthen the technological and software activities of Siemens’ railway division, confirming the centrality of the mobility business in the German group’s strategy. According to sources close to the dossier, negotiations are still ongoing and there is currently no certainty about reaching a definitive agreement.
