Having announced one of the largest organisational changes in the company’s history earlier this month, https://rubberjournalasia.com/continental-to-realign-structure-spin-off-powertrain-and-possible-ipo-of-rubber-unit/, the Supervisory Board of automotive parts/tyres maker Continental has given the go ahead. With this approval, a new holding structure of Hanover-headquartered Continental will be created under the new Continental Group umbrella brand and the current Powertrain division will be spun off into an independent legal entity under a new name by the beginning of 2019. Andreas Wolf will take over as head of the new company starting at the beginning of 2019. A partial initial public offering (IPO) is expected starting mid-2019.
“The Supervisory Board supports Continental’s rapid and profitable growth. The early and foresighted realignment of the organization opens up new possibilities and adds value for the company. It makes Continental even more competitive permanently. That is why the Supervisory Board has unanimously agreed to one of the largest organizational changes in the history of the company,” said Supervisory Board chairman Professor Wolfgang Reitzle.
Dr. Elmar Degenhart, Continental CEO, was pleased with the decision of the Supervisory Board: “In light of the profound transformation in the automotive industry, we scrutinized various scenarios for a realignment in the past months. We do, after all, want to continue to grow faster than our relevant markets. Furthermore, we see new potential for expansion in the key future areas of mobility, and we are going to take full advantage of it. On behalf of the entire Executive Board, I would like to express my thanks to all Supervisory Board members for their trust. With their approval of the realignment, we are creating additional value for our customers and are heading into the future of mobility at full speed.”
The new Continental Group umbrella will be supported by three group sectors, namely Continental Rubber, Continental Automotive and Powertrain. The reporting structure and the new names are to be used starting 2020. The group sectors will be established step by step, or enhanced where necessary.
Furthermore, the current Chassis & Safety and Interior divisions will be reorganized by the beginning of 2020. They will become two business areas newly named Autonomous Driving Technologies and Vehicle Networking Technologies, with their business results being reported under the new Continental Automotive group sector. Both areas will be supported by a newly created central Automotive Research and Development function.
The two current divisions Tires (Tire Technologies in the future) and ContiTech will retain their independent organizational structure. Their business results will be reported in the future Continental Rubber group sector.
Continental says it will retain ownership of this business, which is the nucleus and origin of the 147-year-old Hanover-based company. It also says an IPO is not planned at present, but is an option for the future. Several years ago, Continental already undertook preparations, making it possible to create a new legal entity out of this business. It says no further steps need be taken for this at present.