14 DAY TRIAL // Rumors on the recent acquisition of Nokia’s facilities in Romania emerged a few days ago, but official word was that the company is in talks with five important companies.
It appears that Italian manufacturer De' Longhi was the highest bidder, as both companies announced they had reached an agreement for De' Longhi to acquire Nokia's production facility in Cluj, Romania.
The agreement is pending approvals by the local authorities, but the transaction is likely to be approved in the following weeks, rumor has it.
Both companies decided to keep the terms confidential, so no details on the numbers have been disclosed yet. However, official word is that the transaction is expected to be completed during Q1 2012.
“As we assessed the interest in our facility, Nokia was determined to find a major investor with clear plans for growth and committed to creating jobs here in the immediate future. De' Longhi was the ideal candidate in both respects and we are really pleased to have been able to secure the future of the facility so quickly,” said Robert Andersson, senior vice president at Nokia.
According to Italian company De' Longhi, the production facility in Romania will be a key facility for its development strategy.
In addition, with the new acquisition of Nokia’s production facility, De' Longhi will be able to adapt and diversify its production network in the Far East to Europe.
Nokia announced it would close its manufacturing plant in Cluj, last year in September, and it’s been searching for a buyer ever since. After numerous consultations with local authorities in Romania, the Finnish handset maker decided to accept De' Longhi’s offer.
Furthermore, Nokia claims that “since ending production in Cluj in November 2011, [Nokia] has continued to support impacted employees with a number of proactive measures, including financial support and assistance with retraining and job search.”