BYD may have set its sights on Menarini’s Flumeri plant

According to Italian press reports – first carried by the Irpinia news agency and then reviewed by the specialist portal Autobusweb – BYD is showing serious interest in taking over Menarini’s plant in Flumeri (Valle Ufita), southern Italy. This is particularly interesting in light of the fact that, according to earlier reports, Menarini’s current owner, the Seri Industrial holding company controlled by the Civitillo family, had planned to concentrate the historic Italian bus manufacturer’s future activities precisely at this site.

Although the parties concerned have not yet officially confirmed the information reported in the press, accounts suggest that representatives of the Chinese giant have made several visits to the site in recent weeks. Among the visitors, Stella Li, executive vice-president and head of BYD’s operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, stands out: in late August she toured the plant together with Adolfo Urso, the minister responsible for enterprises and the coordination of “Made in Italy”, as well as other officials. This clearly indicates that the initiative also enjoys the support of the competent Italian ministry. Local sources understand that, partly thanks to government mediation, the negotiations are at an advanced stage and, indeed, that following Ms Li’s visit, talks between BYD’s senior management and Seri Industrial accelerated significantly regarding the acquisition and conversion of the Flumeri plant, as the Chinese company would use the long-serving halls not to build buses, but electric passenger cars. (To make the picture more complicated, Giuseppe Zaolino, the local trade union’s chief coordinator, has since spoken out as well, denying the reports about a possible BYD investment in Italy and bluntly describing them as fake news.)

BYD currently has two production bases in Europe, both of them operating in Hungary – alongside its bus plant in Komárom, which is being expanded, production is also set to begin soon at its passenger car factory in Szeged, currently in the trial operation phase. It is in this latter segment that the Chinese company would continue its European expansion by purchasing the Menarini plant. The southern Italian facility, which once operated under the Iveco and later the Irisbus umbrella, ranks among Europe’s largest bus factories in terms of size, with a total area of 1,035,000 m², of which 105,000 m² is covered space, but its utilisation has been low for many years. According to reports, besides BYD, other Chinese companies are also interested in taking it over, so the facility could easily change hands in the foreseeable future.

As is well known, Menarini, which has been through difficult times over the past decade and a half or so, last changed ownership a little over two years ago – at which point it also regained its original name at company level, replacing the Industria Italiana Autobus (IIA) name used since 2015 – after former co-owners Leonardo of Italy and Karsan of Türkiye exited, and Seri Industrial acquired a 98% stake in the long-established bus manufacturer. In November 2024, China’s Geely also came on board with a 25% stake alongside the Italian group, while the Italian state retained a modest 2% share through the Invitalia investment and business development agency. This May, Menarini presented the first two fully electric models in its renewed product range, the Flash midibus and the Airon solo city bus, details of which we covered in this article. In addition to all this, further developments and a push for European market share are also part of the plans, but the sale of the Flumeri plant would mean that, contrary to the management’s earlier ideas, the company would nevertheless have to move bus production back to Bologna.

Photos: Menarini S.p.A.