Abu Dhabi-based Aabar Investments is paying an undisclosed sum to acquire 40% of Daimler’s stake in electric vehicle (EV) firm Tesla. Daimler, which invested in Tesla in May, will retain a 6% stake in the company.
In March, state-owned investment company Aabar paid EUR1.95bn (USD2.7bn) to acquire a 9.1% stake in Daimler, making it the German carmaker’s largest shareholder.
?When we acquired our stake in Daimler in March we identified a number of potential areas for cooperation between our two businesses,? says Aabar chairman, HE Khadem Al Qubaisi. ?One of these was a desire to focus on the development of EVs and projects aiming at the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions.?
Last month, Tesla, which has a deal to supply lithium-ion batteries for Daimler’s smart car EV, received a USD465m loan commitment from the US Department of Energy. The firm plans to use the funds to support the development of manufacturing facilities for its Model S saloon and battery packs. Tesla is targeting a battery production capacity of 30,000 units per year by 2013.
StrategyEye's related categories: Traditional Vehicle Manufacturers
StrategyEye's related companies: Aabar Investments PJSC, Daimler AG
