Estonia, EU – Baltic States, Good for Business, Innovations, Technology, Tourism, Transport

Chairman of the supervisory board of T solutions Andres Osula said the Norwegians are entering the company as a strategic investor. "The development of ticketing systems which evolved from the IT department of the Tallinn Bus Station has by today grown out of the start-up status. Although T solutions is by now capable of serving its customers and developing its product without extra funding, the Nettbuss investment and their deep specialized knowledge give us more leverage to rise to the top in the field," he said.

The company contacted Nettbuss as a potential customer, but in the course of negotiations the Norwegian company's interest turned out to be bigger than merely adoption of innovative ticket sales solutions, T solutions manager Andres Birnbaum said.

According to Osula, the bus company was prepared to acquire even a bigger stake, but T solutions rather aims to remain an Estonian-equity business. "We were not willing to sell a bigger holding because we believe in Estonian capital," he told reporters.

The parties have agreed not to disclose the price of the transaction but according to Osula it was a seven-digit figure.

Nettbuss Travel CEO Stale Nistov said that the company's customers are increasingly moving to electronic channels and to retain its leading position it needs to communicate digitally with them. "We are convinced that the partnership with T solutions will give us access to the most innovative technology and best know-how in the field," he added.

According to Osula, entry of the state-owned Norwegian company will give T solutions international contacts and help it enter new markets. "While last spring's big news was T solutions' breakthrough in France and the deal with Transdev there, inclusion of Nettbuss in both our customer portfolio and ownership will take Estonian ticket sales solutions to the Scandinavian market," he said.

T solutions processes around eight million tickets annually and provides services to more than 40 bus companies. Its 45 staff are based in Estonia's second-largest city Tartu.

Nettbuss is one of the largest bus operators in Nordic countries with a fleet of 3,300 buses, 7,400 employees and annual sales of 670 million euros. The company carries more than 113 million passengers a year. Its subsidiary Nettbuss Travel is the largest long-distance bus operator in Scandinavia with its network covering Norway, Sweden and Denmark.