Rafael del Pino, the billionaire chairman of builder Ferrovial SA, became the latest businessman publicly criticized by Spanish Premier Pedro Sánchez after announcing plans to move his company’s headquarters to the Netherlands.
(Bloomberg) — Rafael del Pino, the billionaire chairman of builder Ferrovial SA, became the latest businessman publicly criticized by Spanish Premier Pedro Sánchez after announcing plans to move his company’s headquarters to the Netherlands.
There are businessmen who are committed to Spain but “this is not the case of Mr. Del Pino,” Sánchez said Thursday evening during a press conference in Copenhagen. He added that the government will review the legality of Ferrovial’s decision to move to the Netherlands.
Del Pino joins Banco Santander SA Chairwoman Ana Botín and Iberdrola SA Chairman Ignacio Galán as name-and-shame targets of Sánchez, who has had tense relations with parts of Spain’s business establishment since before he became prime minister in 2018. After announcing windfall taxes on banks and energy companies last year, Sánchez said that criticism of the taxes by Botin and Galan was proof that the government was acting correctly.
Ferrovial announced its relocation to the Netherlands on Feb. 28. In a subsequent filing on Thursday, the company said that the move, which will include listing shares in Amsterdam, aims to help the company access cheaper credit and become more attractive to equity investors ahead of a subsequent listing in the US. It cited the country’s “investor-friendly climate,” “trusted” regulations and “prudent” fiscal policy as reasons for the merger. Ferrovial, which earns 82% of its revenues outside Spain, said the Netherlands was a country of choice for comparable, globally active corporations with a strong presence in Europe and North America.
The government last year angered many critics by creating a tax on the rich, which adds to an existing wealth tax.
So far, equity investors are shrugging off the government reaction. Ferrovial shares were were up 1.12% to €27.93 at 10:14am in Madrid, and are up about 2.1% since the announcement.
If approved by shareholders, the move will cost the company about €20 million, and save them about €35 million every year on dividend tax, according to Banco Sabadell SA analysts led by Luis Arredondo.
Following the announcement, Sanchez’s junior coalition partner, far-left party Unidas Podemos, has said it will propose legislation to force companies that move production or residence abroad to return all state aid and subsidies received during the last decade.
Although Del Pino rarely speaks in public, he has been known to be critical of Sánchez and his socialist-led administration. Earlier this year, Ferrovial sponsored an event at which the opposition leader, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, was the main speaker. Del Pino spoke ahead of Feijóo and said that it’s important to make Spain attractive to investors.
Del Pino controls about 20% of Ferrovial and two of his siblings control another 12% between them. The company was founded in the 1950s by his father, also called Rafael del Pino.
The current chairman oversaw the company’s international expansion, which led it to generate about 80% of revenues outside Spain last year. Aside from construction, the company is also a large operator of infrastructure, including Heathrow Airport and toll roads in Toronto and Dallas. The company has also been awarded the construction and operation of a terminal at New York’s JFK Airport.
–With assistance from Macarena Muñoz.
(Updates with company arguments in fourth paragraph, shares in sixth)
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