GM Sells Hummer to Sichuan Tengzhong

by Jordan Yerman | June 2, 2009 at 06:23 am

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Just a day after seeking bankruptcy protection, General Motors (GM) has sold its Hummer brand of SUVs to Sichuan Tengzhong , a Chinese heavy machinery company. The sale, for an undisclosed sum, was began with a memorandum of understanding earlier this year, and 3,000 jobs will be preserved. Sichuan Tengzhong has formed a holding company with Suolang Duoji for purposes of the acquisition.

As the economy continues to stagnate and fuel prices remain high, the once-popular brand of megavehicles had become an albatross around GM's neck. As the company seeks to reinvent itself, Hummer is one of the liabilities that it must shed.

Tengzhong intends to buy Hummer through an investment group in which it will hold 80 percent, and Suolang Duoji will hold the rest, the companies said in a statement on GM’s Web site. Duoji’s holdings include Hong Kong-based Lumena Resources Corp.

GM announced this morning that it and the Hummer buyer entered a memorandum of understanding for the sale. Under the terms of the memorandum, the buyer’s name will not be released at this time.