Mahle Group acquires Delphi Thermal

Mahle, the global development partner for the automotive and engine industry, has acquired the thermal business of U.K. automotive supplier Delphi Automotive PLC as of July 1, 2015.

As a result, the Stuttgart-based group has expanded its strategically important Thermal Management business unit. Today, a comprehensive, energy-efficient thermal management system is as much in demand for combustion engines as for electric drives or fuel cells.

The product portfolios of both companies complement each other with regard to HVAC modules and engine cooling components. Mahle says it places particular importance on Delphi Thermal’s compressor business, which has thus far been missing from its own range. It will now be rapidly integrated into the group as a new unit. Air-conditioning, powertrain cooling, and heat exchangers for stationary applications, however, will become part of the Thermal Management business unit. The thermal business field was created following the acquisition of Behr, which was completed in 2013, and already generated around 40 percent of Mahle’s total sales in 2014.

Thirteen Delphi Thermal production plants in Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, the United States, Mexico, Brazil, China, and India, as well as three major R&D centres in the United States and Luxembourg have now been added to the group’s approximately 150 production locations. As a result of the takeover, the roughly 7,500 employees of Delphi Thermal are expected to bring the total number of Mahle employees worldwide to over 75,000 by the end of 2015.

With the acquisition of Delphi Thermal, Mahle expects total sales of around euro 11.5 billion (Rs 87,906 crore) for 2015 provided that the global economic situation remains stable.

“By successfully concluding this takeover, we significantly improve our market position and move into positions 1–3 in the essential product segments of the thermal management business worldwide,” said Wolf-Henning Scheider, chairman of the Management Board and CEO of the Mahle Group since July 1, 2015. “Furthermore, by joining forces, new opportunities are arising for us. The Delphi Thermal portfolio ideally supplements our product range and systems competence. This also allows us to further expand our production footprint in Europe, North America, South America, and Asia.”

Dr. Jörg Stratmann, head of the Thermal Management business unit and member of the Management Board of the Mahle Group, added: “As the second largest global thermal supplier, we will now be able to offer our customers even better solutions.”

In a subsequent step, the company aims to acquire the joint venture Shanghai Delphi Automotive Air-Conditioning System Co. Ltd (SDAAC) located in China. The negotiating partners anticipate this separate transaction to be concluded in 2016.

Mahle has a local presence in all major world markets. In 2014, some 66,000 employees at approximately 150 production locations generated sales of almost 10 billion euros (Rs 76,400 crore). At 10 major research and development centres in Germany, Great Britain, the USA, Brazil, Japan, China, and India, almost 5,000 development engineers and technicians work on forward-looking concepts, products and systems.