Kobelco to take 70% of Case Construction as CNH sells control of its equipment business

CNH will move the business into a newly formed company, and Kobelco will buy 70% of its shares, Kobelco said in its announcement. CNH expects about $700 million in cash, adjusted for net debt and working capital, according to Equipment World; Construction Enquirer put the price at roughly £524 million. Closing is targeted for the end of 2027 and depends on competition approvals. Both owners face a three-year lock-up, and CNH chief executive Gerrit Marx told investors that CNH will probably sell its remaining stake to Kobelco gradually after that, Construction Briefing reported.

For owners of Case and New Holland Construction machines, CNH said its service and support channels stay in place. CNH Capital remains part of CNH and will keep financing and insuring customers and dealers of the venture, which has the temporary name CE JV. Humayun Chishti, president of CNH's construction segment, is expected to run it. Kobelco said customer services will not change while the deal is pending.

The business has a big footprint on North American sites. Over the 12 months through August 2026, Case sold 5,057 new machines on finance in North America, sixth among brands, while New Holland placed eighth at 2,604, Equipment World reported, citing EDA data from Fusable. Kobelco builds hydraulic excavators and cranes and plans to pair them with CNH's loaders, dozers, graders and backhoes, plus its own K-DIVE remote operation system. The two companies ran a 10-year alliance that ended in 2012.

Several questions are still open. CNH plans to walk dealers through products and services in December, Construction Briefing reported. Neither company has said whether any brands will change. Chris Sleight of Off-Highway Research told the publication that CNH's excavator alliance with Sumitomo, a Kobelco rival, will almost certainly have to end, and that overlapping dealer networks in Europe and North America still have to be sorted out.