Gold Coast’s Transit Australia Group, which operates Surfside Buslines, on market and tipped to sell for at least $200m

A GOLD Coast based company, which is the largest privately owned public transport operator in Queensland, is for sale and tipped to fetch a massive sum.

GOLD Coast transportation giant Transit Australia Group is for sale with a reported price tag of at least $200 million.

TAG, launched by brothers Tony and Joe Calabro in 1989 after they purchased Surfside Buslines, today is the largest privately owned public transport operator in Queensland, with a staff of 1400 operating a fleet of 700 buses.

It also runs Sunbus on the Sunshine Coast and has manufacturing and engineering businesses including Bustech.

In recent years it has also expanded its international footprint, particularly in the Middle East where it signed a lucrative deal to provide electric buses for the new one billion-person city of South Dubai.

Transit Australia group CEO Michael McGee pictured at the company’s bus manufacturing facility at Burleigh Heads. Picture: Jono Searle.

UBS Investment Bank is handling the sale of TAG, confirmed this morning by a spokesman who said an “exciting chapter” had opened in the company’s history.

Likely buyers are reported to be EQI, the London-based private equity and infrastructure investor 3i, Transdev, Singaporean group CDC and Keolis Downer.

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TAG has not only expanded its presence internationally, but also in Australia.

Bustech last year secured a $45 million contract to supply Metro Tasmania with 100 low emission buses, partnering with Tasmanian company Elphinstone to utilise local capabilities while providing a boost to local manufacturing.

Transit Australia Group in 2016 signed a lucrative deal to provide buses for the vast South Dubai masterplanned city, which will be home to one million people and the world's largest airport.

An alliance with South Australian company Precision Components will build operational electric urban buses for trial in Adelaide’s public transport network.

Earlier this year TAG announced a partnership with France-based EasyMile.

It has agreed to operate and maintain EasyMile’s EZ10 driverless electric shuttle buses from its Adelaide manufacturing hub, run by Precision Buses.