FDM Group Regulatory News (FDM)

30 Apr 2007 15:33

Ford Motor Co30 April 2007 Contact: Media, Investment Community Shareholder Inquiries Della DiPietro Larry Heck (Equity) 1.800.555.5259 or 1.313.755.2432 1.313.594.0613 1.313.845.8540 1.313.720.8095 lheck@ford.com stockinf@ford.com ddipietr@ach-llc.com; Rob Moeller (Fixed Income) 1.313.621.0881 rmoeller@ford.com FORD ANNOUNCES SALES PROPOSAL FOR AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS HOLDINGS CONVERCAOPERATION • Ford Motor Company and Linamar Corporation have reached a non-binding proposal outlining the framework for the sale of the Automotive Components Holdings (ACH) Power Transfer Unit business at the Converca I Plant in Mexico. • This is the sixth agreement regarding an ACH business as ACH moves forward in determining the future for each of its operations. One business has been sold and other sales are pending. DEARBORN, Mich., Apr. 30, 2007 - Ford Motor Company and Linamar Corporationtoday announced a non-binding proposal outlining the framework for the sale ofthe Automotive Components Holdings' Power Transfer Unit (PTU) business at theConverca I Plant in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. The ACH Converca I plant is a leading manufacturer of PTUs in the North Americanauto industry. Part of the transmission, a PTU transfers power between axles inall-wheel-drive vehicles. This proposal marks the sixth such agreement reached in the last five months.ACH sold its fuel rail business and its El Jarudo subsidiary in early April.Sales negotiations are continuing regarding the climate control business and theSheldon Road Plant near Plymouth, Mich.; the fascia and fuel tank businesses andthe Milan (Mich.) Plant; the ACH propshaft business, which currently is one ofthe products produced at a Monroe, Mich., facility; and the glass business andits plants in Nashville, Tenn., and Tulsa, Okla., and its Vidriocar subsidiaryin Juarez, Mexico. "This announcement is another solid sign of progress for our North American WayForward plan," said Mark Fields, Ford's president of The Americas. "Thesuccessful approach Ford is taking with our component operations - includingselling or idling our ACH facilities - will help us achieve our commitment toreduce overall operating costs by $5 billion by the end of 2008." "We aggressively are pursuing our strategy and we are very pleased with theresponse from the marketplace," said Al Ver, ACH CEO and COO and Ford MotorCompany vice president. "Recent improvement in the quality, delivery and cost-effectiveness of our operations has surprised some buyers." The Converca I Plant also produces propshafts, stabilizer bars and steeringcomponents. The production of stabilizer bars is scheduled to end late this yearand ACH is considering options for the steering component and propshaftproduction. Linamar Corporation is a diversified global manufacturing company with sales of$2.3 billion and about 11,000 employees and 36 manufacturing locationsworldwide. "The acquisition of ACH's PTU manufacturing and product engineeringcapabilities, with leading-edge PTU technology, would significantly enhance thedepth of our Transmission/Driveline Group," said Linda Hasenfratz, Linamar'sCEO. ACH is a temporary company established and managed by Ford to ensure the flow ofquality components and systems while preparing the automotive componentoperations for sale or idling. Today, the $4 billion company and its 12 plantsare supported by about 12,000 full-time employees, mostly leased from Visteon orFord. Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn,Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles in 200 markets across sixcontinents. With more than 280,000 employees and more than 100 plants worldwide,the company's core and affiliated automotive brands include Ford, Jaguar, LandRover, Lincoln, Mercury, Volvo, Aston Martin and Mazda. The company providesfinancial services through Ford Motor Credit Company. For more informationregarding Ford's products, please visit http://www.fordvehicles.com. ## This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange