| IBJ Staff |
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The New York buyout firm Cerberus Capital Management LP will buy 80.1 percent of Chrysler Group from DaimlerChrysler AG, the German automaker announced today.
The remaining company, to be called Daimler Holding LLC, will retain an 18.9-percent stake in the Detroit carmaker, which will be renamed Chrysler Corp. LLC.
The $7.4 billion deal, supported by United Auto Workers President and Indiana native Ron Gettelfinger, frees Daimler of pension and health care obligations that helped turn Chrysler into a money-losing concern.
The agreement must be approved by DaimlerChrysler shareholders.
Cerberus Chairman said in a statement, "Cerberus believes in the inherent strength of U.S. manufacturing and of the U.S. auto industry. Most importantly, we believe in Chrysler."
DaimlerChrysler operates three transmission plants in Kokomo.
The deal could trigger a formal decision about Getrag Corporate Group's plans to build a $560 million plant in Tipton to assemble dual-clutch transmissions for DaimlerChrysler vans.
The German transmission maker has filed plans with the community between Hamilton County and Kokomo to locate the plant at U.S. 31 and State Road 28. It would employ 1,200.
The 700,000-square-foot Getrag plant likely would be the largest economic development prize since Honda Motor Co. said in June that it would build a $550 auto assembly plant in Greensburg employing 2,000. |
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