Volkswagen has reportedly axed plans to sell Ducati following strong opposition from labor groups.
Bloomberg reports the regional head of the FIOM CIGL union told the publication, “Ducati’s CEO told workers Friday that the VW supervisory board decided to halt the sale process.” Bruno Papignani added “IG Metall sustained and helped Ducati workers in their request to remain inside the VW group which should keep investing in our company.”
Volkswagen had been considering a sale for several months and Ducati reportedly narrowed down the field to five bidders back in July. Nothing is official but insiders said suitors included Investindustrial Spa and Edizione Srl. A binding offer was expected to be made by now and it could have been worth as much as $1.76 (€1.5) billion.
The failure to sell Ducati is obviously a setback considering Audi bought the company for approximately $1 billion (€860 million) just five years ago. The proceeds could have been used to cover costs from Volkswagen’s Dieselgate scandal which will cost the automaker around $30 (€25.5) billion.
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