ISTANBUL — Turkish armored-vehicles manufacturer Otokar Otomotiv is expanding its European industrial footprint by signing a memorandum of understanding to acquire a controlling stake in Romania’s Automecanica, according to a disclosure filed on the Public Disclosure Platform (KAP) this week.
The memorandum sets out the core principles for acquiring 96.77% of Automecanica’s shares, a Romanian defense company with established production infrastructure and licenses. The targeted closing date for the share purchase agreement is by the end of April 2026, subject to standard closing conditions such as due diligence and regulatory approvals in Romania.
Otokar has won a major contract for the supply of Cobra II 4×4 armored vehicles — an agreement valued at approximately €857 million ($1 billion) for 1,059 vehicles, with a local manufacturing component executed in partnership with Automecanica under a joint venture formed in 2025.
Under this contract 800 of the vehicles will be constructed in Romania. To this end Otokar has established its wholly owned subsidiary Otokar Land Systems SRL.
This subsidiary will take on the acquisition process, with an initial payment of €5 million upon signing of the MoU and the remainder payable at closing. The total enterprise valuation basis used for the share-purchase calculation is approximately €87.8 million, which implies roughly €85 million for the 96.77% stake being targeted.
Automecanica currently holds the facilities and necessary approvals in Romania that are intended to support Otokar’s planned industrial activities—especially related to its ongoing Romanian armored vehicle program.
According to KAP, transferring the shares directly to Otokar is expected to enable activities previously envisaged through a joint venture for the Romania 4×4 tactical wheeled light armored vehicle project to be carried out directly through Automecanica, streamlining execution and strengthening local control.
This week’s announcement follows Otokar’s previous disclosure on Jan. 16, when the company confirmed that Romtehnica has submitted compensation claims totaling approximately 191.85 million Romanian lei (around $45 million at current exchange rates), alleging that the Turkish company failed to meet interim preparation milestones for local production of Cobra II 4×4 tactical armored vehicles in Romania.
Otokar said it has filed a lawsuit to annul the compensation claim but also indicated that it will pay the amount when due while reserving its legal rights.
Otokar had not responded to Defense News’ request for comment on whether the litigation is linked to the Automecanica takeover.
Cem Devrim Yaylali is a Turkey correspondent for Defense News. He is a keen photographer of military ships and has a passion for writing about naval and defense issues. He was born in Paris, France, and resides in Istanbul, Turkey. He is married with one son.