Hero MotoCorp Ltd, India’s largest two-wheeler maker, has sold a 49 per cent stake in its Colombian operations to its US partner as part of an agreement inked in 2014.
The company said in a stock market disclosure that it offloaded the stake, held through unit HMCL Netherlands BV, to Woven Holdings LLC. Hero now holds a 51 per cent stake in the joint venture.
It didn't disclose any financial details of the agreement.
According to the agreement, HMCL Netherlands had formed a joint venture with Woven Holdings for sale, distribution and marketing of Hero's products in the South American nation.
Hero had opened its first global manufacturing facility at Villa Rica in Colombia last year. This plant is Hero’s fifth factory, in addition to four assembly plants in India.
Spread over 68,000 sq m of land, the Colombia plant will have an initial production capacity of 80,000 units a year. This capacity will be expanded to 150,000 units a year in the next phase, the company said earlier.
Hero MotoCorp is controlled by the Munjal family, which holds a 34.6 per cent stake in the company. In February last year, the Munjals had sold a 5.3 per cent stake in the company.
In November last year, private equity firm Bain Capital exited its four-year-old investment in Hero MotoCorp. Bain Capital had invested an estimated $566 million (Rs 2,500 crore then) in Hero MotoCorp in 2011. It had co-invested with Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC to help the promoters buy out Japan's Honda Motor Co from their joint venture.
In 2013, Bain Capital and GIC had picked up a direct stake in the firm after the promoters merged Hero Investments Pvt Ltd with Hero MotoCorp.
GIC had part-exited Hero MotoCorp in 2014. It retains a small stake in the motorcycle maker.
