Milan (Italy) (AFP) – Chinese group Weichai on Thursday took control of the world’s top yacht maker, Ferretti, after a takeover battle with a Czech shareholder that had appealed to the Italian government. Ferretti builds luxury yachts under a series of brands including Riva, Pershing, Wally, and Itama at seven shipyards in northern Italy.
Shareholders approved by 52.3 percent a new board put forward by Weichai, the biggest shareholder in Ferretti with a stake of 39.5 percent, the company said in a statement. KKCG, the conglomerate of Czech billionaire Karel Komarek and a rival of Weichai, challenged the takeover and asked Italy’s government to block it. In a statement, KKCG expressed “serious concerns” over the takeover and “potential failures to comply with disclosure obligations”.
KKCG appealed to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to use the government’s so-called “golden power” provision, which applies to strategic assets, to stop the takeover. Ferretti also produces patrol boats for law enforcement agencies. KKCG earlier this year increased its stake in Ferretti from 14.5 percent to 23.23 percent for 115 million euros ($134 million).
On Thursday, KKCG was only allowed one seat on the new board of directors while Weichai appointed eight people. Weichai, a state-owned group based in the Shandong region in northern China, is a major manufacturer of commercial vehicles, construction machinery, and industrial engines, with 100,000 employees worldwide.
Weichai first helped prop up Ferretti in 2012, with a 178 million euro infusion of cash and bank loan guarantees of 196 million euros, at a time when the yacht maker was heavily indebted and hit hard by a drop in demand after the 2009 financial crisis. Ferretti shares were down 5.2 percent on Thursday on the Milan Stock Exchange to 3.50 euros at 1529 GMT.
© 2024 AFP
