German motor and turbine maker Tognum said on May 18 that it would accept an improved offer from the auto group Daimler and Britain's Rolls-Royce, opening the way for a strong alliance.
"The management board and supervisory board consider the increased offer price to be appropriate and recommend that shareholders of Tognum accept the tender offer," a statement said.
Daimler and Rolls-Royce submitted improved terms on May 13, hiking their offer 8.3% to 26 euros per Tognum share.
"Together with Daimler and Rolls-Royce, we are going to create a global technology leader in propulsion systems and decentralized energy systems," Tognum said.
Daimler already owns 28.4% of Tognum, which employs some 8,700 people around the world, and has a long history with the company.
Having owned it for nearly 50 years, Daimler sold Tognum in 2005 to the EQT investment fund for 1.6 billion euros, only to later buy back around 22% in April 2008 for 585 million euros.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2011
