MAN AG chief Hakan Samuelsson said Friday he remains confident his company will win enough shareholder support to complete its 10.3 billion euro (13.2 billion dollar) takeover bid for Swedish truckmaker Scania AB, rejecting any suggestion the offer needs to be revised.
His remarks came as Volkswagen, the largest shareholder in both companies, weighed its next move following the surprise resignation of VW group chief Bernd Pischetsrieder, who had opposed the MAN bid and instead championed a three-way arrangement involving Scania, MAN, and VW's Brazilian truck operations.
Scania's second-largest shareholder, Investor AB, has turned down MAN's proposal, and Swedish labor unions have also pushed back strongly. MAN was already compelled to raise its offer from 9.6 billion euros after both Scania and Investor deemed the original price inadequate.
Scania shareholders have until 11 December to respond to the formal offer, and the European Commission is expected to issue a ruling on the proposed merger on 6 December. Samuelsson told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung that negotiations with Scania were ongoing: "The dialogue will be continued," he said.
Samuelsson added that Scania's headquarters would stay in Soedertaelje, Sweden, if the merger succeeds, and called the combination fair to both sides.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in November 2006, in its own words.