【Text by Observers Network, Pan Yuchen; Editor by Gao Xin】According to reports from Reuters, Bloomberg and other foreign media, the Exor Group, which is owned by the Agnelli family of Italy, is negotiating the sale of truck manufacturer IVECO. Sources said that Tata Motors of India is one of the main potential buyers.

After the news was released, IVECO's stock price on the Milan Stock Exchange rose nearly 10%.

IVECO trucks, Reuters

Regarding this news, both Exor Group and IVECO have refused to comment, and Tata Motors has not responded to the request for comment. Italian unions have called for the summoning of Italian enterprises and Minister of "Made in Italy" Adolfo Urso to discuss the future of IVECO.

IVECO is a renowned commercial vehicle manufacturer in Europe, headquartered in Turin, Italy, with about 36,000 employees, of whom 14,000 are in Italy.

As a commercial vehicle manufacturer, IVECO is smaller than Volvo Trucks, Daimler and Volkswagen Tractor, with a market value of approximately 4.2 billion euros (about RMB 35 billion), and is often considered a potential acquisition candidate by investors and analysts.

Currently, Exor Group owns 27.1% of IVECO's shares and has 43.1% of the voting rights.

Nanjing IVECO's joint venture in China, Nanjing IVECO

It is worth noting that according to Reuters, citing two informed sources, this sale does not include IVECO's defense business - IVECO Defense Vehicles (IDV), which is the largest military vehicle manufacturer in Italy.

Due to the sensitivity of defense business, any transaction related to it becomes complicated and limits the number of potential buyers. Reuters reported that any merger or acquisition involving IVECO is expected to be subject to Italy's "golden share" legislation.

The so-called "golden share" allows the Italian government to set conditions or block foreign and domestic company acquisitions in strategic areas such as energy, telecommunications, and banking. Previously, in 2021, the Italian government had blocked a takeover offer from China FAW for IVECO.

According to Bloomberg, two sources said that IVECO has received three offers for its defense business: one from a joint bid by Italian defense company Leonardo and German Rheinmetall; the other two from French-German tank manufacturer KNDS and arms company Czechoslovak Group. The value of IDV in these bids reached up to 1.9 billion euros (about RMB 15.85 billion).

As the separation process of the defense business progresses, Exor Group has begun negotiations with several non-European counterparts regarding possible sales. In May this year, IVECO stated that it had received bids from potential buyers and would continue to advance the plan to divest its defense business or sell it by the end of this year.

This article is an exclusive article by Observers Network. Reproduction without permission is prohibited.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7529419212989792777/

Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author. Please express your attitude by clicking on the 【top/down】 button below.