Audi buys Ducati

The announcement came on April 19, following the cessation of an arrangement with Ducati's previous owners, Italian private equity firm Investindustrial, that saw Audi offered first right of refusal on purchasing the Italian marque. This arrangement expired on April 15, and despite rumours of Chinese and Indian interest in Ducati, Audi has been announced as the new owner, after purchasing a 70 percent stake in the company. No actual figures have been released by either Ducati or Audi, but reports indicate the Volkswagen-owned German luxury carmaker paid around AU$1.0 - 1.3 billion for the Italian motorcycling brand.

Despite carrying some debts into the deal, Ducati reportedly generated _480 million in revenue on production of 42,000 motorcycles in 2011. Ducati was seen as an attractive proposition by VW-owned Audi, as both an expansion of their four-wheel offerings into the two-wheel market, and a ready-made technology base of small-capacity, high performance engines that Audi may be able to transfer into their passenger car range. For Ducati, the deal will hopefully see more funds for development and expansion of their existing range.

The announcement saw the immediate cessation of Ducati's existing technology sharing with Mercedes-Benz, and more particularly, AMG. This will now obviously make the most recent product of that partnership, Ducati's Diavel AMG Special Edition, something of a collector's item. Despite the formerly close relationship, Mercedes was not believed to be a contender to purchase Ducati from Investindustrial.

Ducati Motor Holding CEO Gabriele Del Torchio said final approval of the deal was expected within the next few months.
"I am confident that the Audi Group will allow Ducati to continue strengthening its position in markets around the world," he said.
"The announcement confirms the positive reinforcement of Ducati made in 2006 under the control of the Investindustrial Group."

Once approved, Ducati will join Lamborghini and ItalDesign under direct Audi ownership as part of the Volkswagen Group.

No word has been announced on any future Ducati-Audi special edition machines, with the more immediate concern being whether Audi will continue to fund Ducati's struggling MotoGP program. It's also too early to tell at this stage if the deal will have any impact on Ducati imports to Australia.