Bosch, Mahle sell their joint turbocharger business

11 September 2017

The Bosch Group and the Mahle Group have signed an agreement to sell their joint venture Bosch Mahle Turbo Systems (BMTS) to FountainVest Partners, a Hong Kong-based private equity investor. The purchase price and other terms of the sale agreement have not been disclosed. Completion of the sale is subject to regulatory approvals.

FountainVest plans to further expand the turbocharger business and to position BMTS for sustainable growth. “We are convinced that the market for turbochargers will continue to grow in the years ahead given this product will play a key role in emission reduction solutions,” said Frank Tang, CEO of Fountainvest. “As part of our investment theme, we will continue to invest in BMTS to ensure the company will grow successfully and achieve a strong market position.”

“The new owner will open up important prospects and growth opportunities for BMTS in attractive markets such as China and North America,” said Rolf Bulander, Chairman of the business sector Mobility Solutions at Bosch.

The international market for turbochargers is expected to continue to grow in the years ahead as the trend toward smaller engines fitted with turbochargers, especially for hybrid drives, remains strong—according to Mahle. BMTS has already benefited from this market trend. However, the company has not yet reached the scale needed to achieve sustainable success. According to some estimates, BMTS had captured less than 10% of the global turbocharger market.

Bosch and Mahle said they do not intend to drive forward the further expansion of BMTS themselves, an expansion which is necessary to successfully secure the company’s long-term position in the market. The two companies revealed their plans for the sale of the joint subsidiary in January 2017. Both companies seem to direct their investment into new areas of development, including vehicle electification technologies, and turbos do not appear to advance this focus.

BMTS develops and manufactures turbochargers for passenger and commercial vehicles. The joint venture, founded by Bosch and Mahle in 2008, currently employs 1,300 people at its locations in Stuttgart and Blaichach in Germany, in St. Michael, Austria, and Shanghai, China.

Source: Mahle