MILAN, Sept 26 (Reuters) – Italian carmaker Fiat
said on Wednesday it had asked a U.S. court to help it define
the price of a 3.3 percent stake in Chrysler that Fiat has
agreed to purchase from the workers’ trust fund VEBA.
Fiat, which already owns 58.5 percent in Chrysler, said it
was seeking confirmation of the price in the Delaware Court of
Chancery through its U.S. subsidiary Fiat America.
On July 3, Fiat exercised the option to purchase a portion
of the stake held by VEBA, or the Voluntary Employees
Beneficiary Association.
In its statement, the Italian company said it could not
agree with VEBA on the price it would need to pay for the 3.3
percent stake.
“While it is unfortunate that we were unable to resolve the
issue without the assistance of the courts, we are hopeful the
matter will be resolved swiftly,” Fiat said in a statement.
“We need to court assistance in the application of a
specific pricing formula which was agreed in 2009 and as such
unrelated to the value of Chrysler today.”
VEBA owns the 41.5 percent of Chrysler that Fiat does not.
The option gives Fiat the right to buy a 3.3 percent stake in
Chrysler every six months.
