Shropshire auto firm Stadco now in hands of £23 billion global giant

The Telford-based body parts company has been snapped up by Cosma International, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Magna International – one of Canada's biggest businesses.

It is not yet known whether Stadco will retain its name once the deal is complete, but the company appears likely to keep its presence in Shropshire, and the new owner says that it is looking to pursue Stadco's current growth plans.

Magna, which turned over 36 billion US dollars (£23 billion) last year, already has 287 manufacturing operations and 81 product development, engineering and sales centres across 29 countries.

The company employs 124,000 people and will take on a further 1,400 once the deal for Stadco is completed in the final quarter of the year.

Stadco chief executive Greg MacLeod said: "The acquisition will provide further opportunities for the business and its employees to flourish and marks the start of an exciting new period in the company's development."

Cosma International's president John Farrell added: "Stadco's body-in-white expertise complements our capabilities in the body and chassis market.

"In addition, this acquisition expands Cosma's geographic footprint and strengthens our existing global customer base."

Stadco is among Shropshire's best-known manufacturers, providing pressings for companies including Jaguar Land Rover, Vauxhall maker General Motors, and Ford.

It employs 573 people in Queensway in Telford, where it has its headquarters, 277 in Battlefield in Shrewsbury, which is its key assembly plant, plus 161 at Llanfyllin in Powys and 91 at Castle Bromwich near Birmingham.

Approximately 300 more staff are employed by the company's German factory in Saarlouis, near the border with Luxembourg and France, from where it supplies a neighbouring Ford plant.

Magna is also a major supplier to well-known car marques, including General Motors and Ford. It is among the biggest automotive parts manufacturers in North America and spent $1.8 billion (£1.2 billion) on acquisitions and investments last year.

Stadco is the biggest independent body-in-white pressings supplier in the UK and achieved turnover of around £230 million last year, with operating profit clocking in at £14.7 million.

Last year, Stadco invested £15 million in equipment. Its Telford site is home to six huge, state-of-the-art presses, and it is a major supplier of parts to Jaguar's new XE and the Ford C-Max.