Japanese home appliance retailer Nojima Corp. has acquired Hitachi Ltd.'s household appliance business for an estimated $US691.2 million.
Nojima plans to complete the deal in fiscal 2026, which ends in March 2027.
The deal allows Nojima to strengthen its product development capabilities by combining Hitachi's technological expertise with its sales network.
As part of the deal, Hitachi Global Life Solutions Inc., a Hitachi unit, will create a new company.
Nojima will purchase an 80.1 per cent stake in the new firm while Hitachi Global Life Solutions will have a 19.9 per cent stake in the new company. The Hitachi unit, however, will keep its commercial air conditioning business.
Hitachi Global Life Solutions said it will transition to focusing heavily on its commercial air conditioning business within its Urban Solutions & Services Business Unit (USBU).
In a statement, Hitachi said it will strengthen its integrated service offerings for building and facility management, energy management, and cooling.
“The new company will continue to provide customers with Hitachi-branded home appliances, from manufacturing through after-sales service,” Hitachi said in a statement.
“Through the strategic partnership between the two companies, we will strengthen the customer-driven business model cultivated in the Japanese market and expand it globally, thereby ushering the Hitachi-branded home appliance business into a new stage of growth.”
Hitachi is transforming its business model. In December 2019, Hitachi off-loaded its 51 per cent stake in Hitachi Chemical to Showa Denko for $US4.5 billion as part of a $6.2 billion deal to divest non-core assets. The deal was completed in 2020.