Autoline & Zagato Alliance

MILAN – September 26, 2008: Zagato Centrostile, the Milano-based Italian automotive design company responsible for designing some of the most beautiful sports cars of the last century for companies such as Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, Bugatti, Bentley, Ferrari - Maserati, Lamborghini, Jaguar and Rolls Royce today announced that Autoline Industries Limited (India) has taken a significant strategic stake in the company.

Zagato, as part of the Autoline Group will offer ‘Art to Part Solutions’ for automotive and transportation markets around the world, leveraging its 300 person design-engineering team and 10 manufacturing facilities in India and the United States.

Commenting on the move, Gopal Patwardhan, Executive Chairman of Autoline said "With Zagato joining our group, we now cover the entire product development lifecycle, with volume manufacturing and advanced engineering now combined with the most exclusive Italian design".

Andrea Zagato, Chairman of Zagato added, "The combination of the latest finite element modelling and analysis technologies from DEP Autoline, a subsidiary of Autoline Industries, with Zagato's functional design philosophy represents a significant development in our 90 year history. Evolving from Aerospace design sensibilities, we were the first company to adopt computer-aided design in the 1980's. The combination with Autoline and its leading-edge design processes will enable us to continue to offer the best of Italian design with the most innovative software modelling and analysis technologies available in the Automotive industry today".

Duke Equity Ltd. (Dubai) and Crescendo Capital (Geneva) acted as financial advisors on the transaction signed at Carnelutti Studio Legale in Milano.