DETROIT —
General Motors has reached a final deal to sell the
Hummer brand to Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial
Machinery Co., the companies announced today.
As part of the deal, GM will continue
to make Hummer SUVs until 2011.
"This transaction marks an
exciting step for both Tengzhong and Hummer, as we
invest in a business that has significant opportunity in
the U.S. and around the globe," Yang Yi, chief
executive officer of Tengzhong, said in a statement.
"We are excited about some of the initiatives
already underway at Hummer that we believe our
investment will be able to accelerate, particularly
related to the creation of the next generation of more
fuel-efficient vehicles to meet not only future
regulations but also customer expectations."
GM's Shreveport, La., assembly plant
will continue to build the H3 and H3T models and AM's
Mishawaka assembly plant will continue to build the H2
until June 2011 with the option of a one-year extension,
according to a GM statement.
Hummer is expected to base its global
headquarters in metro Detroit.
Hummer's existing leadership team,
including CEO James Taylor, will remain, a statement
said.
"Backed by a privately owned and
well-capitalized company, we are going to be able to
focus on providing customers with more efficient models
that deliver HUMMER's promise of authentic,
purpose-built design and engineering," Taylor said
in a statement.
Under the deal, Tengzhong gets
ownerships of the Hummer brand and intellectual property
license rights required to manufacture Hummer vehicles.
It assumes the existing dealer agreements.
Tengzhong has structured the
acquisition of through an investment entity. It intends
to hold an 80 percent stake in the entity and a private
investor named Suolang Duoji will own the remaining
stake.
Duoji's other investments include
Lumena, which produces thenardite, a mineral used in the
manufacturing of glass and paper.
GM and Tengzhong said the deal is
subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory
approvals in the United States and China.