Pirelli may sell stake to Asian buyer
Pirelli, the listed Italian tyre company, could sell a stake to an Asian investor, Italian language daily Il Corriere della Sera reported. The unsourced article said the aim would be to ensure an Asian partner for the group.
The bidders could included South Korean group Hankook, Japanese peer The Yokohama Rubber, the China-based Chemical Corporation and Zhongce Rubber Company. The report noted all these companies have been rumoured to have an interest in Pirelli before.
The new ally would unite with Pirelli chairman Marco Tronchetti Provera, Provera's shareholder allies grouped in Nuove Partecipazioni, Intesa Sanpaol and Unicredit in launching a public offer to delist Pirelli.
The report said that the public offer itself would be undertaken by a specially constituted vehicle registered in Luxembourg. Under the proposals Provera would remain as chairman until 2021, the article added.
Pirelli has a market cap of EUR 7.07bn.
Source Il Corriere della Sera