Honda Motor Company bought out its Indian partner Usha International, ending a 16 year long joint venture. It purchased the 3.16 per cent that the Siel owned through Usha international for Rs 100 a share, making the sale worth RS 180 crore. After ending their partnership with Hero in the two-wheeler market some time back, Honda is now completely on its own in India.
A statement from the Usha said that it was inevitable that some point of time the JV would have to come to a close as this was not one of the main areas where the company’s interests lay. The statement added that the proceeds from the sale would be used by it to expand its business. With the completion of the sale, Siddharth Shriram will step down from the position of Chairman of Honda Siel.
Meanwhile, the Japanese carmaker also issued a statement saying that the process of changing its name and other procedures would be completed in the next few months. It added that HSCI would now be a 100 per cent Honda subsidiary in India.
The buyout comes after months of battle between both partners. Honda wanted to hold a capital raising programme, presumably to expand its facilities and venture into the diesel market. But Siel had refused to participate leading to the rift.
