Hitachi Ltd. plans to partner with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) in a potential Siemens-driven bid for Alstom's energy business. Just yesterday, MHI and Siemens revealed that they will decide whether to submit a joint proposal to Alstom by June 16 that would counter a $17 billion bid from U.S.-based GE.
According to a Bloomberg report, Hitachi and MHI, both Japanese companies and long-time partners, might bid about $5 billion for Alstom's steam turbine assets, with Siemens paying the same amount for Alstom's gas turbine division. However, there was no indication of whether the proposal would include Alstom's wind turbine business.
Bloomberg reports that the president of Hitachi's power systems unit verified the partnership and said the offer would have no effect on the Japanese company's close ties with GE in the nuclear energy sector. GE, meanwhile, continues to negotiate with the French government regarding its $17 billion proposal for Alstom's energy business.
