Pirelli Tyres and Fioravanti have announced plans to work together to develop Pirelli’s patented Cyber Tyre concept. Pirelli Tyres has agreed to acquire the rights to the Fioravanti patent for “a method and system of monitoring the tyre footprints of a motor vehicle, particularly for automatically optimising the behaviour of the motor vehicle.”
The AA, Britain’s largest motoring organisation, could soon be sold or floated on the stock market. According to one Mail on Sunday report, accountants PriceWaterhouseCoopers have been compiling a financial report that could help sell the AA to investors or buyers. The report says private equity owners CVC and Permira wanted to raise £3 billion for the 15 million-member business. They bought the AA from British Gas owner Centrica in July 2004 for £1.7 billion.
Bartec Auto ID Ltd has acquired the tyre management business of Smartronics Ltd and is now supplying Michelin with the Smart-fleet system, used to manage Michelin’s “pence per kilometre” mileage contracts on over 10,000 buses in the UK. Bartec Auto ID Ltd already produces tyre pressure monitoring systems for the automotive industry, with an array of blue chip clients including Ford, Renault, Volvo, Land Rover, Jaguar and many others. The latest acquisition is designed to enable Bartec to extend its scope to provide an enhanced service for managing fleet tyre maintenance across the commercial car, truck, bus and coach markets, according to the company.
Despite reporting net sales of $198 million in the third quarter of 2006 and $548 million (up 19 per cent) in the first nine months, Amtel-Vredestein’s net loss doubled to $22 million between January and September. For the full year, the company projects net sales in excess of $800 million and EBITDA of approximately $100 million in 2006, according to the company. “A net loss of $10-$12 million is expected for the year — primarily as a result of increased investment costs and interest expenses as the company continues its Russian production, distribution and retail expansion programme,” official documents stated.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has directed the Pawan Ruia group, promoters of Dunlop and Falcon Tyres, to make open offers for both the, reports Business Standard. The regulator has also directed the company to pay interest of 10 per cent to the shareholders as penalty from February 2006, over and above the offer price for violation of the takeover code by the promoters.
Aufeer Design has signed a strategic alliance with Matador Automotive corporation. The agreement was strengthened by Matador Automotive’s acquisition of one third of the Aufeers’s privately held shares. Matador, one of the Slovakia’s biggest corporations, says that is has the primary objective if supporting Aufeer Design activities‘ growth and expansion in Czech, Slovak and international automotive markets, including those involving more than 30 joint-venture companies which it currently owns in the automotive segment.
The Pentagon has honoured Abraham Pannikottu and his American Engineering Group team for designing airless tyres for the Stryker armoured vehicle. Pannikottu and his team have toiled for three years to come up with the tyres, which can run without deflating even after being shot. At a function at the Pentagon, Claude M Bolton, Jr, assistant secretary of the army for acquisition, logistics and technology, presented Abraham with the 2006 Army Small Business Innovation Research award and the Small Business Technology Transfer Quality Award.
ExxonMobil Chemical Company and Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd. (YRC) have developed DVA (dynamically vulcanised alloy) advanced tyre inner liner technology based on proprietary Exxpro polymers as well as alloys and application technology developed by YRC. The DVA advanced inner liner technology used in the film liner materials combines the flexibility and elasticity of a rubber with the low-air permeability of a plastic.
Overall values of the UK’s 50 leading tyre companies are on the up, rising 10 per cent in the period studied by a new Plimsoll Publishing report. 35 of the companies included have seen their values increase by a staggering 20 per cent. This is a direct result of improved profitability and a conscious effort by their managers to place their company’s on a firm financial footing. These companies are building a solid foundation to further enhance their values in 2007, the report says.
Kwik-Fit Fleet has won a two-year sole supply contract with Pendragon Group to supply fast-fit and tyre management services to the three contract hire and fleet management companies within the organisation. The new deal, which Kwik-Fit Fleet won after fighting off competition in a competitive tender, means Britain’s largest independent fast-fit company will supply services to the 25,178 vehicles operated by Pendragon Contracts, Bramall Contracts and Vardy Contract Motoring.
(Akron/Tire Review) In a move that appears to target the onslaught of overseas investment, China’s Ministry of Commerce implemented new rules earlier this month that increase government regulation of foreign companies’ mergers with and acquisitions of domestic Chinese businesses. The rules expand on previous provisions issued in 2003. The new regulations require regulatory approval whenever a proposed transaction involve a foreign company that has more than 3 billion yuan (approximately $376 million) in assets, more than 1.5 billion yuan ($188 million) in revenue within China, or a 20 per cent or larger share of the domestic market; give foreign investors more than a 25 per cent share of the Chinese market; involve a foreign company that has concluded more than 10 deals over the preceding year in related industries; result in a foreign company’s control of a famous Chinese brand or trademark; or otherwise affect ‘national economic security,’ a term that the regulation leaves undefined.
Following the public dispute initiated by Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi, Marco Tronchetti Provera has now resigned from his position as boss of Telecom Italia. Although Tronchetti Provera always claimed the acquisition of the Italian Mobile Telephone Company TIM and its integration into Telecom Italia was an excellent strategic move, last week he revealed that a split into two separate companies again would be even better.
Marco Tronchetti Provera may be an extremely qualified financial manager, but with regards to major financial transactions his timing has most definitely been off. A few years ago Pirelli bought a major share of Telecom Italia at a premium price that could be seen only a few months later. However it is easy to see with hindsight and no-one could have predicted the events of 9/11 and its implications on the world’s stock markets.
Just a few short weeks ago another financial transaction failed. Provera’s plan to generate 1 billion euros through a sell-off of parts of Pirelli’s tyre business was ill-fated from the beginning. This time the window of opportunity closed too fast. Competitors were forced to issue earnings warnings and overnight stock holdings in tyre companies were no longer considered ”sexy.”
Amtel-Vredestein N.V. has announced that it has begun production of its Amtel brand of tyres at the Moscow Tyre Plant-M; only weeks after the company announced its intention to acquire the factory. The company has also met its promise to make the plant more environmentally friendly by shutting down rubber mixing at the facility.
Korean company Hyosung Corp. is to take over four tyre cord plants from Goodyear Tire & Rubber for an undisclosed price, although various sources are quoting a figure of $80 million. Hyosung will acquire 100 per cent of Goodyear subsidiary Utica, plus it will assume control of the tyre manufacturer’s cord factory at Decatur. The other two factories are sited in Luxembourg and Brazil. In addition to the acquisitions, Hyosung has struck a deal – reportedly worth $3.2 billion – to supply Goodyear with tyre cord.
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