Wincanton European disposal waved through by EC

Wincanton has received an early Christmas gift with approval from the European Commission to dispose of its last business interests on the Continent.

As announced in August, Wincanton is disposing of its remaining European operations to Rhenus AG & Co in a £39m deal.

It marks the company’s exit from Europe as it instead pursues a policy of consolidation and growth within the UK and Ireland.

In a statement released this summer when the sale was announced, Eric Born, chief executive of Wincanton, said: “The sale of our remaining businesses in mainland Europe to Rhenus will enable us to focus on developing our leading position in the UK market, where we have greater scale and see significant potential for profitable growth.”

Born is overseeing a period of restructuring at the firm, which revealed a £75.5m pre-tax loss for the first half of the year this November, partly as a consequence of its European exit.

Wincanton is currently looking to off-load its loss making foodservice division.