Frankfurt

MIDEA Group Co, China's biggest appliance manufacturer, began a tender offer to raise its stake in Kuka AG that values the industrial robot maker at 4.6 billion euros (S$6.9 billion) and has provoked calls from within the German government for an alternative European investor.

Midea is offering 115 euros a share, contingent on it being able to increase its stake to at least 30 per cent, the Foshan, China-based company said on Thursday. It pledged to help Kuka beat a 2020 sales target by broadening the product range to tap the full extent of the Chinese market as well as expanding into household robots for cleaning.