Following initial reports by Reuters regarding talks between Exor and the Indian automotive giant Tata Motors over the sale of Iveco, institutional concerns have begun to surface. During a parliamentary question session, Italy’s minister for enterprises, Adolfo Urso, stated that the government is following the matter with great attention, aware of the industrial vehicle sector’s strategic importance for the national economy and employment. Iveco currently employs around 14,000 people in Italy. Since 1 January 2022, the company has operated independently from CNH Industrial, listing its shares in Milan and Amsterdam, with Exor (the Agnelli-Elkann family holding) maintaining control with 27.1 percent of the capital and 43.1 percent of voting rights.
Trade unions have taken a more uncompromising stance, demanding an urgent meeting with the government. In an official statement, the metalworkers’ union Fiom Cgil said the government must stop any sale that threatens Iveco’s plants and workforce. It accused the current ownership of dismantling Italy’s automotive industry piece by piece through a series of planned spin-offs, divestments and sales, from Ferrari to Marelli, then CNH Industrial and now Iveco. Minister Urso has convened a meeting with the unions for 31 July.
This is not the first time Exor has explored the possibility of selling Iveco. In the autumn of 2020, the Chinese group Faw Jiefang expressed interest, making a $3 billion offer. At the time, Italy was governed by Giuseppe Conte’s second administration, but the affair coincided with a change in leadership, as Mario Draghi took office on 13 February 2021. The matter was subsequently examined by Palazzo Chigi’s Golden Power task force. On 4 March 2021, economic development minister Giancarlo Giorgetti stated that the issue “clearly falls under the scope of Golden Power,” though he noted that any activation would depend on the presentation of a binding offer.
The episode concluded on 17 April of the same year, when CNH Industrial (then Iveco’s parent company) announced it had ended discussions with Faw Jiefang. While no official reason was given, it was reported that the government had applied moral persuasion, in agreement with French finance minister Bruno Le Maire, due to Iveco’s ownership of the French bus manufacturer Heuliez. The Golden Power mechanism was never formally activated, but the implied threat was deemed credible enough by the Chinese negotiators, who subsequently walked away from the deal.
