John Deere acquires carbon fiber component maker King Agro

Updated Mar 10, 2018
A Deere carbon fiber sprayer boom.A Deere carbon fiber sprayer boom.

John Deere says it has signed an agreement with Spanish company King Agro to acquire the carbon fiber development firm.

Financial details of the deal were not made available.

King Agro has been developing carbon fiber technology products for the last 30 years, is headquartered in Valencia, Spain, and has a production facility in Campana, Argentina. The company produces carbon fiber components, which are very light but can be stronger than steel, for the agriculture industry.

Deere and King Agro have been working together since 2015 when they partnered to develop carbon fiber booms for Deere equipment, “offering growers the significant advantages of carbon fiber’s versatility, strength and durability in self-propelled spraying equipment.”

“This transaction provides John Deere customers the chance to benefit further from King Agro’s unique knowledge, designs, and expertise in carbon fiber technology,” John May, Deere’s ag solutions president and the company’s chief information officer, said in a statement.

May detailed the benefits of the acquisition as including “sharing best practices in product development, manufacturing, technology, as well as in scale,” according to a Deere press release.