Aston Martin Sells 20 Percent Stake

Representatives of the British luxury sports car manufacturer Aston Martin admitted they are currently looking to sell a 10 to 20 percent stake in the company but refused to unveil the names of potential investors. According to Executive Vice President Amr Abou El-Seoud, Aston Martin has already found interested buyers for the said stake, with a deal to be announced anytime in the near future. However, there's no plan to sell the whole company and exit the automotive industry, Seoud explained for Autonews, with Investment Dar to remain in business with a stake of 40 or 45 percent.

"We have offers. ... We are in talks, but the (sale) should be value-added whether financially or technically. We are not considering selling and exiting. It (could) be a maximum 10 to 20 percent of the company to be taken out of all investors. There is a 60 to 70 percent chance that we will reach a deal soon,'' Amr Abou El-Seoud was quoted as saying by the aforementioned source.

Investment Dar is also interested in obtaining a 300 million dinar ($1 billion) loan for refinancing debts, according to Autonews, but no other details were provided.

Earlier this month, Aston Martin announced that approximately 600 workers will be let go in the next few months, mostly due to the economic crisis which is reducing sales on most emerging markets.

"I might sacrifice today some of my future profit, but I'll get today a better benefit and support from a technical partner,” Amr Abou El-Seoud said, explaining that Aston Martin urgently needs an investor to maintain the same production level without other cost-cutting measures.