November 29, 2007 13:16 ET

MAHLE and India Pistons Signed Agreement for Joint Venture

STUTTGART, GERMANY--(Marketwire - November 29, 2007) - The MAHLE Group, headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany, announced today that MAHLE GmbH and India Pistons Ltd. had signed an agreement for a joint venture for the manufacture of pistons for new engine applications.

The joint venture will primarily focus on the production of pistons for gasoline and diesel engines for the fast growing Indian market requiring compliance with future emission regulations, such as Euro IV and above. It will also introduce new piston designs with oil cooled galleries for new diesel engine generations.

The new company which will operate as MAHLE India Pistons Ltd. is a 50/50 joint venture with MAHLE holding the industrial and technological leadership. The manufacturing facilities of the joint venture will be located in India Pistons Ltd.'s plant near Chennai, India. The actual production capacity of approximately 3.2 million pistons per year is expected to double within three years. In the year 2008, the company will be employing a work force of about 300 employees and is expected to achieve sales of approximately 25 million EUR.

For the next three years, substantial investments in fixed assets, production plant equipment as well as quality management systems are envisaged by the joint venture partners.

MAHLE GmbH brings to the joint venture its advanced technology in design and manufacturing domains to meet the complex requirements of contemporary and emerging engine platforms. India Pistons Ltd. will supplement this with the manufacturing expertise it has built up over the years.

Prof. Dr. Heinz K. Junker, Chairman of MAHLE Group Management Board and CEO, stated, "We believe that MAHLE India Pistons Ltd. has the potential to become the leading piston company for the Indian market in terms of technology and competitiveness. For MAHLE it is also a strategic step to improve our global presence and global production footprint."

The MAHLE Group is one of the 30 largest automotive suppliers worldwide. As the leading manufacturer of components and systems for the internal combustion engine and its peripherals, MAHLE is among the top 3 systems suppliers for piston systems, cylinder components, valve train systems, air management systems, and liquid management systems. With more than 40,000 employees in 110 production plants and seven research and development centers, MAHLE generated sales in excess of EUR 4.3 billion (USD 5.8 billion) in 2006.

India Pistons Ltd., formed in 1949, is a subsidiary of Amalgamations Group. It is an accredited piston supplier to all leading Indian vehicle and engine manufacturers and has been closely associated with their engine development programs.