Bosch sells remaining shares in Denso

The shareholding was a non-strategic financial investment that Bosch had held since the mid 1950s. Bosch had already sold part of its original investment in 2009. For the roughly 46 million Denso shares, Bosch has received some 1.1 billion euros. The cash funds will be used for capital expenditure in areas with a promising future, as well as to finance acquisitions. An alliance stretching back nearly 60 years The sale of shares in no way affects the long-standing and successful relationship between Bosch and Denso. “For nearly 60 years now, the two companies have been cooperating in the automotive supply industry. The basis of this successful cooperation has always been mutual trust and the common desire for excellent technical solutions,” said Dr. Stefan Asenkerschbaumer, the chief financial officer of Robert Bosch GmbH. Bosch and the Japanese Denso Corporation have enjoyed many years of partnership. As early as 1953, the two companies (at that time Denso was still called Nippondenso Ltd.) signed a first license agreement concerning the manufacture of electric automotive equipment such as generators and starters. In 1956, they expanded their license agreement to include the manufacture of spark plugs. Up until recently, agreements have been extended and new ones signed. Bosch and Denso are also shareholders in the Associated Fuel Pump Systems Corporation (AFCO) and Advanced Driver Information Technology Corporation (ADIT) joint ventures. AFCO has produced fuel pumps for vehicles in the U.S. city of Anderson, South Carolina, since 1989. ADIT, which was set up in 2003, develops platforms for vehicle infotainment systems in Kariya, Japan and Hildesheim, Germany.