Daimler and AKKA Technologies Create a New Leading European Engineering Consultancy

STUTTGART, Germany, Dec. 8, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Daimler AG and AKKA Technologies S.A. will jointly manage the MBtech Group, an internationally leading engineering and consulting company based in Sindelfingen, in the future. The details are specified in an agreement signed by Daimler and AKKA Technologies on December 7, 2011. Subject to the approval of the antitrust authorities, AKKA Technologies will acquire a stake of 65 percent; until now, MBtech has been a 100 percent Daimler subsidiary. With a substantial equity interest of 35 percent in the future, Daimler will remain a long-term and strategic shareholder as well as an important client of MBtech.

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The entry of AKKA Technologies at MBtech Group will create one of the biggest European engineering consultancies. AKKA Technologies is a listed company and is an engineering consultancy for the automotive, aeronautics, space, transport and energy sectors. In the area of aeronautics engineering, the company is already the market leader in Europe. In the future, that position will be held by AKKA Technologies and MBtech also in the automotive sector, where the Sindelfingen company has its focus.

The two companies complement each other ideally in their sectoral structure, client portfolio and regional positioning: AKKA Technologies has its main focus on France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom, while MBtech has a strong market position in Germany, China and the United States.

Together with the new majority shareholder, MBtech will broaden its competence profile outside the automotive industry and expand its international market position in the coming years. Daimler and AKKA Technologies intend to jointly develop the company and to strengthen its competitiveness on a sustained basis. This will protect jobs at MBtech while offering new opportunities for the workforce in an expanded international environment.

"With AKKA Technologies, we have found a strong and well-established partner whose product offering is an ideal supplement to MBtech's activities. Through the new partnership, MBtech will utilize market opportunities for engineering services even better than before, allowing it to participate even more in the future worldwide growth in this sector," stated Professor Dr. Thomas Weber, Member of Daimler's Board of Management for Group Research and Mercedes-Benz Cars Development. "At the same time, the enhanced competence profile of MBtech will provide important support for Daimler's product and technology offensives," he continued.

"AKKA Technologies was born out of a vision I once had, which I continue to pursue: 'How we can turn the passion that our talented team has for technology into innovative solutions for our industrial customers.' This partnership will turn that vision into a reality: with MBtech and Daimler we are embracing a whole new world of new business and career opportunities. Together, we will develop new products and services and strengthen our power to innovate," promises Maurice Ricci, Chairman and CEO of AKKA Technologies.

AKKA Technologies employs a workforce of 7,000 people at more than 50 locations and expects to post revenue of 545 million euros in 2011.

The MBtech Group was established by Daimler AG in 1995. The company develops, integrates and tests automotive components, systems and modules, and employs 2,900 people at locations in Europe, North America and Asia. In the year 2010, it posted revenue of 300 million euros.

Further information on Daimler is available on the Internet: www.media.daimler.com and www.daimler.com

This document contains forward-looking statements that reflect our current views about future events. The words "anticipate," "assume," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "plan," "project," "should" and similar expressions are used to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to many risks and uncertainties, including an adverse development of global economic conditions, in particular a decline of demand in our most important markets; a deterioration of our funding possibilities on the credit and financial markets; events of force majeure including natural disasters, acts of terrorism, political unrest, industrial accidents and their effects on our sales, purchasing, production or financial services activities; changes in currency exchange rates; a shift in consumer preference towards smaller, lower margin vehicles; or a possible lack of acceptance of our products or services which limits our ability to achieve prices as well as to adequately utilize our production capacities; price increases in fuel or raw materials; disruption of production due to shortages of materials, labor strikes, or supplier insolvencies; a decline in resale prices of used vehicles; the effective implementation of cost-reduction and efficiency-optimization measures; the business outlook of companies in which we hold a significant equity interest, most notably EADS; the successful implementation of strategic cooperations and joint ventures; changes in laws, regulations and government policies, particularly those relating to vehicle emissions, fuel economy and safety; the resolution of pending governmental investigations and the conclusion of pending or threatened future legal proceedings; and other risks and uncertainties, some of which we describe under the heading "Risk Report" in Daimler's most recent Annual Report. If any of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or if the assumptions underlying any of our forward-looking statements prove incorrect, then our actual results may be materially different from those we express or imply by such statements. We do not intend or assume any obligation to update these forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made.

About Daimler
The company's founders, Gottlieb Daimler and Carl Benz, made history with the invention of the automobile in the year 1886. 125 years later, in anniversary year 2011, Daimler AG is one of the world's most successful automotive companies. With its divisions Mercedes-Benz Cars, Daimler Trucks, Mercedes-Benz Vans, Daimler Buses and Daimler Financial Services, the Daimler Group is one of the biggest producers of premium cars and the world's biggest manufacturer of commercial vehicles with a global reach. Daimler Financial Services provides its customers with a full range of automotive financial services including financing, leasing, insurance and fleet management. As an automotive pioneer, Daimler continues to shape the future of mobility. The Group applies innovative and green technologies to produce safe and superior vehicles which fascinate and delight its customers. With the development of alternative drive systems, Daimler is the only vehicle producer investing in all three technologies of hybrid drive, electric motors and fuel cells, with the goal of achieving emission-free mobility in the long term. This is just one example of how Daimler willingly accepts the challenge of meeting its responsibility towards society and the environment. Daimler sells its vehicles and services in nearly all the countries of the world and has production facilities on five continents. In addition to Mercedes-Benz, the world's most valuable automotive brand, Daimler's brand portfolio includes smart, Maybach, Freightliner, Western Star, BharatBenz, Fuso, Setra, Orion and Thomas Built Buses. The company is listed on the stock exchanges of Frankfurt and Stuttgart (stock exchange symbol DAI). In the year 2010, the Daimler Group sold 1.9 million vehicles and employed a workforce of more than 260,000 people; revenue totaled 97.8 billion euros and EBIT amounted to 7.3 billion euros.

SOURCE Daimler Corporate Communications

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