Royal Enfield is currently in talks to purchase iconic Italian motorcycle brand Ducati.
Rumours of Volkswagen selling Ducati have been doing the rounds since the time the German automobile manufacturer got embroiled and then heavily penalised for their vehicles not meeting emission standards. VW currently owns Audi which in turn owns Ducati. Due to the financial hit VW took, it has been looking to sell off brands which are not the most central to the automobile group.
Last week there were rumors about Hero MotoCorp purchasing Ducati, which we had reported on xBhp. Now, according to a TOI report, Royal Enfield has been approached by VW to buy Ducati.
The Italian marquee is valued at 1.5 billion euro according to estimates.
Royal Enfield has witnessed a very steady growth in both the domestic and international markets. The company is perfectly poised for such a takeover. RE is also one of the oldest motorcycle brands in the world and has a cult following and heritage to match that of the Ducati.
Ducati had been purchased by Audi in 2012 for 860 million Euros. According to TOI Eicher is interested in the deal provided the valuation is acceptable.
Currently Indian manufacturer Bajaj owns a 49% stake in KTM, while TVS has a tie-up with BMW for manufacturing their smaller capacity bikes in India. Hero had also bought Eric Buell Racing in the US, before the company went under. It would be interesting to see Ducati to be owned by an Indian company. Ducati has arguably the most race oriented company setup in the two wheeler industry the world over. Hopefully, whoever the new owner would be, that tradition would continue.
Source: Times of India
