(Recasts with fresh CEO comments)
By Peter Wuebben and Nick Tattersall
FRANKFURT, Jan 29 (Reuters) - German heating and appliance maker Buderus AG said on Wednesday it would not be in favour of a takeover by car parts producer Robert Bosch, and said there had so far been no talks between the two firms.
Bosch made a surprise announcement earlier this month that it already held 13.35 percent of Buderus, reigniting takeover speculation and sending Buderus stock sharply higher.
Buderus's main shareholder, building group Bilfinger Berger , has said it has had informal contact recently with Bosch about its 30 percent stake and would be prepared to sell at the right price, although it had not received an offer.
Buderus chief executive Uwe Lueders said on Wednesday he saw a brighter future for Buderus if it remained an independent firm and pursued its own strategy of growing its core business, both organically and through acquisitions.
Bosch abandoned a hostile takeover bid for Buderus a year ago after talks with shareholders failed, and Lueders said Buderus's position that it preferred to remain independent had not changed since.
"We are still convinced of that. Nothing has changed in that regard," Lueders said at a news conference, adding that Buderus aimed to become Europe's leading heating appliance maker.
"We believe we can achieve this best as an independent company."
He also pointed to Bosch's insistence that its stake in Buderus was simply a financial investment.
"Should something change there, I would think Bosch would say something about how things will develop," he said.
Buderus stock was 0.25 percent weaker at 24.04 euros by 1310 GMT, compared to a 0.9 percent fall on the German mid-cap index.
NO HURRY
Buderus is widely seen as a solid asset that would fit in well with Bosch's strategy of reducing its dependence on the cyclical automotive business, which currently accounts for around 70 percent of its sales.
But analysts note that Buderus's major shareholders, who also include Commerzbank , with a 10 percent stake, are in no hurry to sell, and sources close to the parties involved say it would likely take months to piece together a deal.
Bilfinger has long said it held the Buderus stake as a financial investment, repeatedly saying it would only be prepared to sell if it received an attractive offer, or if it needed liquidity.
When Bosch made its bid for Buderus a year ago, the stock was trading at around 30 euros, but analysts say its business has deteriorated since then and fair value is now lower.
Buderus said late on Tuesday its pre-tax profit fell close to 13 percent last year due partly to weak demand in its home market and said it saw no signs of a pick-up so far this year.
Lueders told Reuters he wanted to grow the company's heating technology business overseas this year, and planned to make an acquisition outside Germany in the coming months.
He said the company aimed to grow in all its business areas in 2003, despite the weak economy, adding that he hoped the heating business had seen the worst in its home market.
The firm has said it cannot make a forecast for its current business year until after the first quarter due to economic uncertainty.