Fiat Set to Close on Teksid Foundry Purchases

Shareholders have approved Teksid Aluminum Luxembourg's proposed sale of its three Italian foundries to Fiat Powertrain Technologies S.A., a subsidiary of the automotive giant. The sale, for an undisclosed price, would return the three operations to the organization from which they were spun off in 2003.

Fiat has released no specific information about the cost or timing of the sale, but some reports indicate the price is a mere 100 Euros. Fiat is reported to consider the two plants to be indispensable to its ongoing operations. The plants being sold are a lost-foam foundry and a gravity casting operation, both at Carmagnola, Italy, near Turin. A third foundry neaby at Borgaretto produces specialized castings for aerospace customers. Teksid has been selling off its foundry operations since late last year, mostly to Nemak. It still holds two foundries in France and the aerospace products operation in Italy. Teksid Aluminum — formerly the light-metal casting operations of the Fiat organization — was formed in 2003 after the sale of a dozen or so plants to Questor Management Co. L.L.C. for $444 million. Fiat retained its ferrous casting operations.