HEILIGENHAUS/VELBERT (dpa-AFX) – The Chinese automotive supplier Lingyun has confirmed its intention to remain the owner of the insolvent car lock specialist Kiekert. “The goal is to get the insolvency out of the world as quickly as possible,” said a spokesman for Lingyun when asked by the German Press Agency (dpa).
The shareholder will make important contributions to this: “This includes, in addition to satisfying the creditors, also implementing a viable future concept for the next few years that meets with the approval of all important parties involved.” Germany and the location in North Rhine-Westphalia are absolutely central. There is now a regular, constructive exchange with those involved. “This is as trustworthy as it is confidential.”
Allegations against Chinese shareholder Lingyun
The Wuppertal district court ordered preliminary insolvency proceedings on September 23rd. Joachim Exner from the law firm Dr. Beck & Partner definitely. The insolvency is the consequence of “the fact that the Chinese shareholder did not provide any further funds and did not fulfill his financial obligations in the three-digit million range,” the company said in a statement.
“The shareholder affected by sanctions denies us access to important markets and financing, which significantly endangers our business activities,” explained Kiekert CEO Jérôme Debreu. “The shareholder’s exit is crucial to accelerate our growth and to continue Kiekert’s 168-year history as a systemic supplier to the automotive industry.”
Is a new investor the best solution?
A week ago, insolvency administrator Exner announced that business operations were running stable again. “All orders will be produced and delivered as usual,” it said in a statement. He and his team are now examining the restructuring options for the company, whether an investor solution or restructuring via an insolvency plan, i.e. a settlement with creditors, is the best solution.
Almost 700 employees in Heiligenhaus in the Mettmann district are affected by the bankruptcy. According to IG Metall, almost 300 of them work in production. More than 200 are employed in the development department. The others work in sales or data processing. The foreign subsidiaries of Kiekert AG in Europe, Asia and North America are not affected by the proceedings.
IG Metall: Lingyun is serious
According to IG Metall, the insolvency application could only be withdrawn if the so-called reason for insolvency was eliminated. “That means, for example, if you are insolvent and are therefore declared bankrupt, you have to be solvent again,” said the first representative of IG Metall Velbert, Hakan Civelek, to the dpa. Then you could take over the company again. He couldn’t say how likely that was in the Kiekert case.
During a meeting with the shareholder, he got the impression that the shareholder was seriously trying to get the company back. However, Lingyun was already aware of the insolvency situation before the application.
Trade unionists: iron out weak points now
At Kiekert we now have to address the question: “How did the crisis at Kiekert come about? Where are the problems?” Even against the background of weak demand from car manufacturers, weak points must now be ironed out promptly “in order to be able to get off to a flying start again after bankruptcy at the latest,” Civelec continued.
The trade unionist expects that when looking for investors there will be a number of interested parties who want to take over Kiekert. IG Metall is completely open to the process. “We will give everyone who develops the Heiligenhaus location the same chance.” Of course, the Lingyun Group is also included.
Also Aston Martin and Rolls-Royce use Kiekert locks
Civelek also sees support from car manufacturers as positive. “They want to continue to have their parts from the world market leader because they need them but are also happy with everything.” For example, Mercedes (Mercedes-Benz Group (ex Daimler)) equips its S-Class with locking systems from Kiekert. They are also installed in vehicles from Aston Martin (Aston Martin Lagonda Global) and Rolls-Royce. The global market share is almost 25 percent. “For some German car brands it is even significantly higher.” The trade unionist expressed overall confidence: “As of today, there is absolutely no reason to be pessimistic.”
According to the insolvency administrator, Kiekert is the world market leader for vehicle locking systems. According to Exner, the group of companies employs a total of 4,500 people. Kiekert is considered the inventor of modern central locking. The company was taken over by Lingyun in 2012./tob/DP/zb
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