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Polaris
Industries Inc. CEO Scott Wine (right)
& Eicher Motors Limited CEO and
Managing Director Siddhartha Lal (left)
happily shake hands after signing an
agreement for their companies to enter
into a joint venture. |
Minneapolis, MN (7/24/2012) -
Polaris Industries Inc. (NYSE: PII) today announced
a joint venture with Eicher Motors Limited,
a leading manufacturer of commercial vehicles
and motorcycles in India. The joint venture
will develop and market new products to meet
the diverse vehicle needs in India and other
emerging markets. The agreement creates a new
operation, wherein Polaris and Eicher each control
50 percent. The overall investment is expected
to be approximately $50 million, shared equally
between the partners over a three-year period.
“This agreement instantly expands and
enhances Polaris’ presence in India
and supplying access to additional emerging
markets around the globe and leverages Polaris’
strength in product innovation and vehicle
development” said Scott Wine, Polaris
CEO. “Eicher’s financial strength
and rich history as a leader in the Indian
market makes them the perfect partner for
Polaris in India. This joint venture represents
an incredible opportunity to develop new vehicles
and realize global growth.”
Eicher is a well-established, powerful brand
in India. The company today is comprised of
Royal Enfield, an iconic motorcycle brand,
and VE Commercial Vehicles Limited (VECV),
a 50/50 venture with Volvo. VECV, established
in 2008, manufactures and markets medium-to-heavy-duty
trucks and buses, engineering components and
provides engineering design solutions. Between
its two business divisions, Eicher has a dealer
network with more than 400 locations in India.
“At Eicher Motors Limited, we are committed
to long term growth and value creation for
our stakeholders through both organic and
inorganic expansion,” said Siddhartha
Lal, managing director and CEO, Eicher Motors
Limited. “This joint venture strongly
supports our strategic direction. Currently,
we are active in the commercial vehicle and
motorcycle categories. Collaborating with
Polaris allows us to enter new profitable
vehicle segments.”
The joint venture will benefit from the complementary
and shared strengths each partner provides,
utilizing these collective talents to co-develop
new products for emerging markets. Polaris’
unmatched innovation in engineering and design,
paired with Eicher’s powertrain expertise,
economical engineering and knowledge of local
markets create a powerful combination. The
companies’ shared dedication to manufacturing
excellence and responsible management further
strengthens this partnership.
While strategies are still under discussion,
Eicher and Polaris plan to cooperatively build
a new manufacturing facility to support this
joint venture, with production projected to
start in 2015.
