Kuka shareholder Voith undecided on Midea bid; BMW and VW may lead consortium to buy 25%
Kuka shareholder Voith has yet to decide whether to sell its 25.1% stake in the German robotics company to Chinese bidder Midea, Boersen-Zeitung reported.
The German-language daily cited a spokesperson for Voith, the private German machinery maker, as saying that it will deal with the topic in good time. Voith will consider all options very carefully, the spokesperson said.
Unconfirmed information indicates that Kuka Chief Executive Till Reuter is working on organizing a 25% acquisition of Kuka by an industrial consortium, the article added.
Citing the media source Platow-Brief, the article said the German automakers BMW and Volkswagen are under consideration as possible leaders of the consortium.
According to this unconfirmed information, the arrangement would involve German companies obtaining a 15% stake in Kuka, joined by Arab companies that would acquire 10%.
Midea, the Chinese household appliance maker, has offered EUR 115 per Kuka share, which would mean Voith's stake in Kuka would sell for more than EUR 1.1bn, the article noted. Midea wants to secure 30% in Kuka and has already accumulated 13.5%, the article said without identifying sources.
Boersen-Zeitung