Shandong Heavy Industry Weichai Group Joins Hands with Ferretti, the World's Largest Luxury Yacht Trader

On January 10, 2012, Shandong Heavy Industries Weichai Group and the world’s largest luxury yacht manufacturer Italy Ferretti Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Falati”) reached an agreement to acquire Ferretti by participating in the process of Ferrari debt restructuring. Controlling power. Shandong Heavy Industries Weichai Group will provide 178 million euros of equity investment, while providing 196 million euros in loan lines, a total investment of 374 million euros. After the completion of the debt restructuring process, Shandong Heavy Industries Weichai Group will obtain a 75% controlling stake in Ferrari. Existing creditors, as financial investors, obtained another 25% of the equity through a share swap and a 25 million euro cash investment.

Chairman of the group Tan Xuguang stated: "Developing the yacht industry is one of the five-year strategic planning goals of Shandong Heavy Industries Weichai Group. Ferretti has an internationally renowned brand, top-notch manufacturing technology, high-quality products and perfect sales channels. It is a Ideal and strategic partners, the two sides of the transaction will maximize the synergies between groups on the basis of resource sharing and industrial integration, and further increase the overall competitiveness of products, sales channels, and after-sales services, and achieve The win-win situation has enabled the Group and Ferretti to continue to be the world’s top yachting company and consolidate its leading position in the existing luxury yacht market.”

Norberto Ferretti, chairman of Ferretti, said: “We are proud of the agreement with such a company as the Shandong Heavy Industry Weichai Group and are confident in the future of cooperation. Cooperation will provide a solid foundation for the long-term development of Ferretti. The capital base. In addition, China is one of the emerging countries where the yacht industry is developing rapidly. The market has great potential in the next 5 to 10 years."

The contact between Shandong Heavy Industries Weichai Group and Ferretti has been in place for a long time. In the past two years, the two sides have gone through several rounds of difficult negotiations. During the period, they received the full support and cooperation from the Ferretti Group, Mr. Ferretti himself and all creditors, and finally the two parties came together.

Ferretti is the world's largest luxury yacht manufacturer, boasting the world's most advanced boat development center and first-rate industrial design team, a global supplier system consisting of more than 800 suppliers, and the world's most advanced yacht manufacturing system. It owns 8 luxury yacht brands, among which Ferretti, Riva, Pershing and Bertram are among the top 10 brands in the world. Ferretti has a sales network of about 60 carefully selected distributors in more than 80 countries around the world, and has established more than 1,000 service stations and spare parts supply centers in 86 countries. At present, Ferretti has 8 shipyards, of which 7 are in Italy and 1 in Miami, USA, with nearly 2,000 employees. The company had sales of more than 900 million euros in 2008 and sales of about 500 million euros in 2010.

Affected by the financial crisis, the global yacht market has been declining since 2008, and the industry as a whole is undergoing a new round of corporate mergers and business integration. In the process of historical development of Ferretti, due to leveraged purchases by shareholders, excessive debt has brought a heavy financial burden on the company. Due to the financial crisis, business operations have been in a predicament. Coupled with the spread of the European debt crisis, most banks in Europe are also in a difficult position, creating conditions for the Group to obtain a controlling stake in the world's top brands by acquiring debt.

At the same time, yacht consumption in the emerging market countries represented by the BRIC countries is in a period of rapid development. China's yacht imports in 2010 were more than three times the 2009 imports. Experts predict that the Chinese yacht market will enter a period of rapid growth in the next 5 to 10 years. The yacht will become an important tool for promoting the development of maritime tourism and corporate business activity platforms, as well as a part of the wealthy middle class living and entertainment. The future market has great potential. .

In order to adjust the Group's business structure, Shandong Heavy Industries Weichai Group has realized the expansion of power products to high-end shipbuilding technology, and at the same time has driven the technical upgrading of the Group's ship propulsion system. It has long established that the yacht industry is the Group's strategic objective in the group's "Twelfth Five-Year Plan". one. Ferretti, as a leader in the world yacht industry, meets the Group’s strategic development aspirations. This transaction will undoubtedly accelerate the pace of realizing the Group's industrial restructuring and international development. On the basis of the vessel propulsion technology of France Baudouin acquired by Weichai in 2009, we will develop a propulsion system for high-speed boats to fill gaps in our technology and business in this field; build high-end yacht manufacturing industry chain clusters to promote Shandong Peninsula Blue The strategy of the economic zone in the color zone was completed.

The cooperation between the two parties can be regarded as a powerful alliance. The Group can enable Ferretti to continue to be a top global player in the yachting industry. At the same time, it seizes the strategic opportunities in the emerging markets and takes advantage of the recovery opportunities in Europe and the United States to develop Ferretti into a unique and genuine one. Global luxury yacht manufacturers ultimately achieve a win-win situation. Ferretti has an internationally renowned brand, leading manufacturing technology, high-quality products and perfect sales channels, especially the world's leading industrial design capabilities; Shandong Heavy Industry Weichai Group has a full range of marine power products, low-cost scale manufacturing, Large market network and service system advantages. Through the transaction, the Group can provide support for Ferretti products to enter emerging markets by providing channels, funds and other effective resources. On the basis of resource sharing and industrial integration, the Group maximizes the synergies between groups and assists Ferretti in fully exploiting China as its representative. Emerging markets such as the Asia-Pacific region will inject growth momentum into Ferretti’s development; at the same time, the Group will provide high-quality, low-cost spare parts for Ferretti’s European production base to enhance the profitability of the company; in addition, the Group will also provide The Emperor provided financial support and other resources to promote its rapid development in the traditional European, American and emerging markets.

In China's strategy, Ferretti will establish a China R&D center and parts supplier system. We will introduce the world's top boat development technology and Italian industrial design technology to China, develop and design luxury yachts, official boats and even commercial cruise ships suitable for China's future market. At the same time, it will drive Italian and internationally renowned parts and components companies to invest in factories in China to form industrial clusters. It will further enhance China’s shipbuilding technology, actively guide the domestic consumer market, and at the same time effectively develop the international market, contributing to China’s advancement from a shipbuilding power to a shipbuilding power.

Through this transaction, Shandong Heavy Industries Weichai Group will directly enter the world's top luxury yacht market, master the world's best yacht industry resources, and promote the product value of the Group's yacht propulsion system, making the Group a global leader in high-end luxury yacht products and Propulsion system supplier. At the same time, the transaction will also further promote the strategic adjustment of the Group's product structure, balance the Group's domestic and international business layout, and make the business model from investment-led equipment manufacturing to consumption-led high-end luxury products.