Published December 12, 2012
By Philippe Crowe
A123 Systems, Inc. announced Tuesday, Dec. 11 at 5:55 pm that it has received approval from United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware to sell substantially all of A123’s assets to Wanxiang America Corporation.
The Court also granted approval for A123 to sell its government business to Navitas Systems.
As previously announced, following Johnson Control’s withdrawal from the auction, A123 and Wanxiang have agreed to terms on an asset purchase agreement through which Wanxiang would acquire substantially all of A123’s assets for $256.6 million.
The sale is subject to certain closing conditions, including approval from the Committee for Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS).
According to A123, excluded from the asset purchase agreement with Wanxiang is A123’s Ann Arbor, Mich.-based government business, including all U.S. military contracts, which would be acquired for $2.25 million by Navitas Systems through a separate asset purchase agreement.
“Receiving Court approval of our asset purchase agreement with Wanxiang and Navitas is an important step toward finalizing the sale of A123’s assets, and we are now focused on CFIUS approval of the sale to Wanxiang, which we are confident that we will receive given the structure of this transaction,” said Dave Vieau, chief executive officer of A123. “We believe an acquisition by Wanxiang will provide A123 with the financial support necessary to strengthen our competitive position in the global vehicle electrification, grid energy storage and other markets, and we look forward to completing the sale.”
Court documents and additional information can be found at a dedicated Web site administrated by the Company's Claims Agent, Logan & Company.