It seems Ducati may have found a buyer. At least, a car company is very, very interested.
For a while the word on the street has had Ducati up for sale. Supposedly, owners Investindustrial were looking for about $1.6 billion. Indian motorcycle manufacturers Hero were supposed to be interested, but now a new potential buyer has emerged, and according to reports, they’re putting their money where their mouth is.
The potential buyer is luxury automobile manufacturer Audi. According to CAR magazine, the company has signed a deal giving them first rights to buy Ducati. The deal is in effect until mid-April, when CAR’s sources say the sale will be finalized.
According to CAR’s sources, Audi isn’t likely to shell out the hundreds of millions in cash for the sale. Instead, they suggest Audi will assume Ducati’s debt burden (supposedly the reason behind the sale) and pay the owners a few million euros (50-100, the article suggests) to sweeten the deal.
Supposedly, Volkswagen group bigwig Ferdinand Piech has been looking to put a deal for a luxury bike builder like this together for a while. CAR suggests Piech was originally interested in reviving Horex, but decided the defunct manufacturer did not have the brand recognition needed for his plan to work. Ducati shouldn’t have that trouble.
