Rail engineering groups are considering bidding to run the railways.
They include Balfour Beatty, Jarvis & Serco, Amey, Amec, First Engineering, Grant Rail and GTRM.
Other groups could bid for the operating licence but not Railtrack’s assets.
The Government published guidelines for possible bidders.
Railtrack administrators told the Commons transport sub-committee it could take more than the target six months for a new company to be established.
Ernst & Young’s fees as administrators to Railtrack could amount to more than £500,000 per week.
The administrators are concerned that Government plans for raising £34bn of private capital are not “credible”.
The Treasury has given the administrators £800m to enable them to operate the railway while the Government decides its next move.
Standard & Poor has lifted the credit rating of Railtrack’s sort-term borrowings from single C to A1-plus. The rating of its £1.6bn of eurobonds remains at single C.
The company’s rating of CC is also unchanged.
Financial Times 01/11/01 page 3
The Times 01/11/01 page 31 (Commentary), page 32
The Daily Telegraph 01/11/01 page 33, page 37
The Independent 01/11/01 page 19
The Guardian 01/11/01 page 23
