In International Tractors, Yanmar buys Blackstone's 18% Stake.

Mumbai: In International Tractors, Japan's Yanmar has agreed to buy 18% stake, in one of the largest foreign capital inflow into India's core agriculture-related industrial sectors, makers of Sonalika branded tractors, for about Rs 1,600 crore, increasing the Tokyo-based firm’s stake to 30%.

The world's biggest private equity fund, Blackstone Group, which will make a rough three times return on a four-year-old investment. Yanmar will acquire shares held by Blackstone Group.

About Rs 9,000 crore, the deal will value the company. In 2012, Blackstone had invested in ITL and this exit adds to a series of successful ones the New York-head quartered private equity giant has made in the recent past. Subject to the receipt of requisite regulatory approvals, in next few months, the transaction is expected to close.

Sources said that, BMR legal as the legal counsels for Yanmar and BMR Advisors was the financial advisors, while Goldman Sachs advised Blackstone on the deal. Yanmar is looking to increase its stake in International Tractors. In 2005, Yanmar was an early investor in the Indian company having bought the stake for Rs 200 crore.

The transaction was confirmed by both International Tractors and Yanmar. Partnership with Yanmar has and will be a game changer for the tractor industry both in India and overseas, said ITL Vice-Chairman, AS Mittal, while confirming this development.

In the country, Sonalika is the third largest tractor maker. In the first eight months of this financial year, Sonalika has sold around 50,000 tractors both domestic and exports. The company has been working on scaling up its presence in international markets, between April and November this year its exports have grown by 20% to 8121 units.

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/