Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) has formed a joint venture with Andrea Mantellini, the operator of a BMW/Mini dealer group located in Bologna, Italy. The joint venture intends to acquire and operate dealerships in northern Italy, Penske said in a news release today. Mantellini will manage day-to-day operations of the business. Financial terms were not disclosed. Penske appears to be buying a premium brand and entry into the market at presumably fire sale prices.
The newly formed joint venture has acquired the Mariani BMW/Mini dealership in Monza, Italy, a suburb of Milan, and home of a fabled Formula One racetrack. It is Penske’s stated purpose to enter the Milan market, whose metropolitan area is in world’s top 20 and Europe’s top 10 business and financial centers with the highest average income rates in Italy.
Penske Automotive Group based in Michigan operates 335 retail automotive franchises, representing 42 different brands and 29 collision repair centers. Until today, its European dealerships were in the Untied Kingdom. Roger S. Penske, 75, was paid more than $4.4 million for his services during 2011, according to the latest SEC filing.
Italy, of course, is undergoing a financial crisis that has seen the corrupt Berlusconi government collapse in disgrace, with questions remaining about its economic viability given its enormous debt and bloated union sectors. Mario Monti, the new Prime Minster, is currently engaged in talks to reform Italy’s labor practices and debt.
