Status:  Pending, Divestiture

Acquirer:  Midea Group Co., Ltd. (China)

Acquired:  KUKA AG (Germany)

Value:  Est. US$1.3 billion

Industry:  Technology; Automation

On June 28, 2016, KUKA AG, a German based supplier of intelligent automation solutions, signed an investor agreement with Midea Group Co., Ltd., a publicly trade Chinese company and major home appliance producer. The agreement would give Midea a majority stake in the company following its offer to buy out KUKA AG’s largest shareholder, investor Voith GmbH.  (See Kuka AG Press Release, June. 28, 2016; see also Bloomberg, China’s Midea to Become Largest Investor in Germany’s Kuka, July 3, 2016.)  On December 15, KUKA announced the sale, for an undisclosed price, of its U.S. business KUKA Systems Aerospace North America to U.S. automation company Advanced Integration Technology Inc., “in connection with open regulatory approvals in the United States.” (See KUKA Press Release, Dec. 15, 2016.)  The announcement stated that “[t]he sale is an important step to fulfill security-relevant requirements of the U.S. authorities CFIUS (Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States) and DDTC (Directorate of Defense Trade Controls). Both authorities are currently reviewing the takeover offer from MECCA/Midea for KUKA, focusing on KUKA`s activities in military and security-relevant areas in the United States.” (Id.)