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The competition is losing its AAA at SNCF

At Transport SNCF, talking about a non-event. Standard and Poor's downgraded by one notch Friday mark the long-term debt of the public company, which went from "AAA" – the highest possible – from "AA +", the prospect is stable. This means that S & P should not lower the rating further in the months to come.

The rating agency justifies this development, which will cost "several million" up interest rates to SNCF, by "the European rules that could make it more difficult in future for possible financial support" of government French in the public company as well as the opening to competition of rail passengers including his lucrative branch TGV."We believe that the most profitable activities of the station will be gradually exposed to competition," explains Standard & Poor's.

Since 1 January, the international passenger traffic is indeed officially liberalized in Europe, pending an opening to competition of domestic traffic, which is expected by 2015. For now, only Veolia announced its willingness to engage in this activity. A perspective that condemns the station eventually to lose market share.

"It remains a very good note"

The SNCF said it was prepared to such an announcement since the "perspective" was negative since September 2008. "It remains a very good score Guaranteed pay day loans.Many European states have not rated AA +, "said David Azema, deputy CEO in charge of finance and strategy at SNCF. The rating agency looks at the level of support that the station can expect from the state. The AAA rating corresponds to a quasi-automatic support in the event of default and AA + to support very highly probable. "

The company refuses to see in this a confirmation that the degradation status of public institution operating in industrial and commercial (Epic) is threatened. The S & P's decision certainly comes just after France decided to take legal action against the EU Commission, which considers the status of Epic necessarily implies an unlimited guarantee from the state, inconsistent with competition who sits in the sector.The rating agency noted that although skirmish between Paris and Brussels, but does not in itself a cause of degradation.

Conversely, the fact that the station has seen its rating lowered even though it is still an Epic could argue along the lines of the French arguments: clearly, the status of Epic does not mean the view of S & P that the situation Financial SNCF blends perfectly with that of the French state.

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