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July 26, 2000 10:54 AM, EDT

Freightliner Corp. intends to extend its manufacturing empire in Canada and pick up more shares of the Class 8 rig sales with the proposed acquisition of Western Star Trucks for more than $400 million.

James L. Hebe, chief executive officer of Freightliner, announced the deal with the British Columbia truck manufacturer July 19. He told reporters that his company planned to pay $42 in Canadian currency for each share of Western Star, which makes big truck tractors virtually to custom order.

The price was a 20% premium over the July 18 price of C$34.95 a share posted in trading on the Canada Stock Exchange in Toronto.

he purchase will amount to C$670 million, or more than $453 million in U.S. dollars, according to Hebe. It will mark Freightliner’s first addition since the Sterling Truck division’s creation after the acquisition of Ford Motor’s heavy truck operations in 1997.

For the full story, see the July 24 print edition of Transport Topics. .