October 11 - Following recent press speculation and Demag Cranes AG's (Demag Cranes) announcement concerning a potential transaction, Konecranes Plc (Konecranes) has confirmed that it approached Demag Cranes on 8 September 2010 to discuss a potential comb
Konecranes says this was a preliminary approach and the management of Demag Cranes has responded that Demag Cranes has no interest in engaging in any dialogue regarding such a potential combination. To date there have been no concrete negotiations between the two companies.
As Konecranes has previously stated, it believes there is a need for consolidation in the crane industry, particularly in Europe. Konecranes is continuously evaluating its strategic options in this respect.
The company says that it believes that a combination of Konecranes and Demag Cranes would follow a convincing industrial logic and would be highly beneficial to both companies and their respective stakeholders. Konecranes is convinced that if Demag Cranes were willing to engage in a dialogue, a structure for a potential business combination could be agreed that would be in the interest of both companies' stakeholders and also be viable from a regulatory perspective. However, currently there is no certainty that any transaction will materialize.
