11 months ago
Aston Martin shareholders are poised to give the thumbs-up to a technology deal with Mercedes-Benz that could eventually see the German brand owning one-fifth of the luxury sports car maker.
A strategic technology agreement – originally announced on October 27 – will be put to the vote at Aston Martin’s general meeting next Friday (Dec 4) after passing stock market anti-trust conditions.
The cut-off for advance voting is 9.30am on December 2, and shareholders have been sent a letter of recommendation by Aston Martin Lagonda executive chairman Lawrence Stroll.
The letter details why the board believes that the transaction is in the shareholders’ best interests.
Mercedes-Benz previously owned some five per cent of Aston Martin shares via another agreement. Its stake in the company will be gradually increased up to a maximum of 20 per cent.
Back in October, Aston Martin also said that a new business plan would see it targeting some £2bn of revenue, estimated profitability of £500m and producing about 10,000 vehicles by 2024/25.
At the time, Wolf-Dieter Kurz, head of product strategy at Mercedes-Benz Cars, said: ‘We already have a successful technology partnership in place with Aston Martin that has benefited both companies.
‘With this new expanded partnership, we will be able to provide Aston Martin with access to new cutting-edge powertrain and software technologies and components, including next-generation hybrid and electric drive systems.’
Stroll, meanwhile, hailed the agreement as ‘a transformational moment for Aston Martin’, adding: ‘It is the result of six months of enormous effort to position the company for success to capture the huge and exciting opportunity ahead of us.’
It followed a tumultuous time at Aston Martin that culminated in chief executive Andy Palmer being shown the door in May amid a collapse in its share price, as reported by Car Dealer.
Canadian billionaire Stroll took over as executive chairman the previous month.
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