Gasgoo Munich- The Hefei State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission has approved Hefei Construction Investment Co., Ltd. to acquire a 5.30% stake in Gotion High-Tech from Volkswagen (China) Investment Co., Ltd., according to a progress update previously disclosed by Gotion High-Tech.
The transfer involves 96,180,444 unrestricted tradable shares at RMB 24.09 per share, with a total transaction value of approximately RMB 2.317 billion. Upon completion, Volkswagen China's stake will decrease from 24.28% to 18.98%, but it will remain the largest shareholder. Hefei Construction Investment will hold a 5.30% stake, becoming a shareholder with more than 5% of the company's shares.
Image source: Gotion High-Tech
The transfer price of RMB 24.09 per share represents a 10% discount to the closing price on the trading day before the agreement was signed. It is also approximately 4% lower than the closing price of RMB 25.08 on November 5. According to National Business Daily, the transferee has pledged not to sell the shares or entrust their management to others within 12 months of the transfer registration date. It also will not appoint directors or senior executives to the company. The announcement clarified that the transfer does not trigger a mandatory tender offer, does not constitute a related-party transaction, and will not result in a change of the controlling shareholder or actual controller. The company's control remains with Gotion Holdings and Li Zhen.
Regarding the reasons for the transaction, the announcement stated that the transferee recognizes the company's development prospects and long-term investment value, while the transferor is selling part of its stake due to its own business needs. Hefei Construction Investment Co., Ltd. is wholly owned by Hefei Construction Investment Holding (Group) Co., Ltd. The funds for the acquisition will come from its own funds or self-raised financing.
Another announcement released on the same day provides an interesting point of comparison.
On September 28, Gotion High-Tech's board approved a proposal to establish three joint ventures with PowerCo, a subsidiary of Volkswagen Group. The projects include a lithium battery plant with an annual capacity of 29.1 GWh in Valencia, Spain; an 8.4 GWh plant in Šurany, Slovakia; and a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cathode material project with an annual capacity of 100,000 tons in Kenitra, Morocco. The total investment is approximately EUR 3.222 billion, with Gotion and PowerCo contributing approximately EUR 1.598 billion and EUR 1.624 billion, respectively. The announcement described the arrangement as a deep strategic partnership featuring "mutual equity investment and cross-deployment."
While the equity transaction represents a reduction in shareholding, the capacity expansion reflects deeper cooperation. The two developments are not contradictory.
The share transfer agreement still requires compliance confirmation from the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, followed by registration with the Shenzhen branch of China Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation Limited (CSDC). The final completion date therefore remains uncertain.
