Japanese elevator makers including Mitsubishi Electric Corp. are among potential suitors studying bids for TK Elevator's European operations being sold by EQT AB-owned rival Fujitec Co. Kone Oyj aims to sell the assets to clear antitrust approvals for its €29.4 billion takeover of TK Elevator. A deal could fetch around €5 billion ($5.6 billion) or more. Japanese elevator makers have been seeking to boost their footprint in Europe, where the market is led by Germany's Schindler Holding AG.
The European operations are set to generate earnings of more than €400 million. Deliberations are ongoing, and there's no certainty who will submit formal bids. The size of the deal will depend on which assets are ultimately included in the sale following negotiations with the European Commission.
Representatives for Fujitec and Mitsubishi Electric declined to comment as did spokespeople for EQT, Advent and Cinven. Kone said remedy divestments may be necessary in some geographies to secure regulatory clearance, adding it remains committed to delivering the estimated €700 million of annual synergies.
Source: Bloomberg Markets · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing