Volkswagen Group's board signed off on a $3.7 billion deal for its heavy-truck unit Traton to acquire Navistar International, deepening VW's bet on the lucrative North American market.
VW will provide Traton with a 12 month to 18-month loan of 3.3 billion euros ($3.9 billion) to fund the transaction, according to a statement Saturday.
Details of the deal -- in which Traton will pay $44.50 a share for the 83 percent of Navistar stock it does not own -- were unchanged from an announcement last month. It’s expected to close mid-2021.
Navistar, the maker of International branded trucks, is a major player in North America. Traton has coveted the company as a means to challenge sector leaders Daimler and Volvo on a global scale.
The VW unit makes Scania and MAN vehicles and is largely dependent on sales in Europe and Latin America.