Navistar on Wednesday said it has received all regulatory approvals needed to proceed with a previously announced merger with Dusk Inc., a wholly owned indirect subsidiary of Traton SE. The closing date of the merger is expected to be on July 1, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.
Navistar, the manufacturer of International Trucks, and Traton, Volkswagen's commercial truck arm, in November entered into a merger agreement in which Traton would acquire all of the outstanding common shares of Navistar for $44.50 per share in cash. Traton previously held 16.7% of Navistar, which it acquired via a procurement joint venture and strategic technology and supply collaboration in 2016. Navistar stockholders approved the buyout deal at its annual meeting in March.
Traton CEO Matthias Gründler noted the closing of the buyout, which has been on the table in some form since January 2020, combines Traton’s strong position in Europe and substantial presence in South America with Navistar’s complementary footprint in North America, and form a global company.
Once the merger with Traton is complete, Navistar will be part of the Traton Group, and thus support Traton in its aim to become "a global champion of the transportation industry." Navistar will be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange and deregistered with the SEC this month.
"Over the past five years, Navistar and the Traton brands have worked very well together and it is exciting to become now part of the global Traton Group," said Navistar President and CEO Persio Lisboa. "Our common understanding of the future of transportation and our joint heritage create a very solid basis for our common way forward. The transport industry is changing rapidly. And together we will shape this change – for the sake of our customers. The Navistar team is ready for the next step of collaboration."
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on Wednesday finalized a delay it announced last February to the Entry-Level Driver Training rule.
The final rule published Wednesday in the Federal Register finalizes an interim final rule published Feb. 4, 2020, that delayed the effective date of the ELDT rule from Feb 7, 2020, to Feb. 7, 2022. The agency says the delay “provides FMCSA additional time to complete development of the Training Provider Registry and provides State Driver Licensing Agencies time to modify their information technology systems and procedures, as necessary, to accommodate their receipt of driver-specific ELDT data from the TPR.
