The contrasts could hardly be greater: One builds emission-free and quiet electric drives for water sports, the other relies on extremely powerful diesel and gas engines for industry, agriculture, shipping and commercial vehicle construction. But the first impression is wrong; Torqeedo and Deutz are very successful in their respective segments, and the merger can be beneficial for both companies.
According to the company, Torqeedo will continue to be run as an independent subsidiary of Deutz AG and will continue to advance the development of its marine products under its own established Torqeedo brand with the previous management.
Successful boat drive: the Torqeedo Cruise 2.0 in the YACHT test
Founded 12 years ago in Starnberg and previously supported by venture capital, the takeover by Deutz heralds a new phase in the development of Torqeedo. Dr. Christoph Ballin, Managing Director and founding member of Torqeedo, says: "Torqeedo has extensive know-how in electric motors, battery management, power electronics and system integration. We look forward to driving forward electrification in the off-highway sector together with the Deutz development teams. As As part of the Deutz Group, we want to use the additional opportunities for Torqeedo in the areas of industrialization, purchasing, sales and service and accelerate our growth again."
Since entering the market in 2006, Torqeedo has achieved average annual growth of 35 percent. Sales in the last financial year amounted to 25 million euros, which corresponds to a growth of over 40 percent. The company employs 130 people at its locations in Gilching near Munich, Crystal Lake, Illinois (USA), and Bangkok (Thailand).
Alternative drives should also play an important role in Deutz's core segments in the future. The Torqeedo technology competence becomes the nucleus of the E-Deutz strategy. The company is thus rounding off its modular technology kit for reducing emissions and CO2. Among other things, there is potential in the "downsizing" of internal combustion engines and the associated reduction in fuel consumption and operating costs.
Deutz diesel engine production in Cologne
Deutz plans to launch the first products on the market in around two years and thus much earlier than if they had been developed without Torqeedo's know-how. To accelerate the implementation of the new strategy, Deutz will initially invest around 100 million euros. "We are on the way to position ourselves as the market leader in innovative drive systems and will offer our customers hybrid and fully electric solutions in addition to our established solutions," said Dr. Frank Hiller, CEO of Deutz. "The acquisition of Torqeedo enables us to bring technically mature and economical electrification solutions to the market faster. We position ourselves in the competition at an early stage and therefore see very good market opportunities for us."
Torqeedo's management team will take on additional tasks in the top management of Deutz AG in the future: CEO Dr. Christoph Ballin as Head of Strategy, COO Dr. Ralf Plieninger as Head of Electrification. Heiko Brambach is appointed to the management as the new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Torqeedo. The 40-year-old business economist was most recently Head of Controlling Products at Deutz.