Bruce Barnard, Special Correspondent | Apr 18, 2012 10:28AM EDT
FedEx Corp said it is in negotiations over a “potential plan” to buy French express shipping company Tatex as it seeks to expand its European footprint by taking over small to midsized firms.
The announcement comes just two weeks after FedEx bought Polish courier company Opek in its first European acquisition following UPS’s $6.8 billion takeover of the Dutch TNT Express in mid-March.
Founded in 1976, Tatex is a business-to-business express transportation company for heavy shipments with a 1,000 strong payroll and a nation-wide network in France, including a central hub in Paris. It carries more than 19 million parcels annually, specializing in the high tech, spare parts, automotive and clothing sectors, and generates revenues of about $198 million.
The acquisitions of Tatex and Opek would boost FedEx’s annual sales in Europe by about $270 million.
FedEx is also tipped to bid for European assets UPS and TNT Express may be forced to divest to get their merger approved by European Union competition regulators.
FedEx, which plans to expand in Europe mostly through organic growth, has opened 26 new stations across France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden and Northern Ireland so far in fiscal 2012.