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11/24/2024 07:12:14 pm

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Germany's Voith Agrees to Sell its Kuka Stake to China's Midea for $1.3B

Mercedes-Benz S-Class Assembly At Sindelfingen Plant

(Photo : Getty Images) A KUKA AG robotic arm installs a dashboard of a Daimler AG Mercedes-Benz S-Class vehicle on the production line in Sindelfingen, Germany.

Germany's Voith GmbH has agreed to sell 25.1 percent of its Kuka AG stake to China's Midea group for $1.3 billion, the mechanical engineering group said in a statement on Sunday.

The deal has paved the way for the Chinese bidder to takeover Kuka. German politicians have scrutinized the agreement. To ease concerns, Midea has vowed to keep Kuka's board independent and refrain the restructuring the company including preserving its headquarters, factories, and jobs until the end of 2023.

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Till Reuter, Kuka's CEO, backed the deal, explaining that it will not only allow Kuka to undertake its strategies more quickly but also to remain as a German group.

Meanwhile, Hubert Lienhard, Voith's CEO, said that the company's investment in Kuka was a "major strategic success." The value of Voith's shares doubled after it bought into the robot maker firm in December 2014.

"I am convinced that Voith is one of the winners for this takeover bid," he said, adding that the proceeds of the deal would be allocated to digital project investments including robotics, sensors, IT security, to name a few. The fund will "give us flexibility for investments in organic growth as well as attractive acquisitions," Lienhard said in a statement.

Midea, China's biggest appliance manufacturer, already owned 13.5 percent of Kuka's shares. It made an offer of about $128 per share to acquire at least 30 percent of the company.

Reuter said that the company had private discussions with potential investors last week to make sure that the Chinese company does not acquire over 49 percent of Kuka's shares.

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