TOKYO - Kohlberg Kravis Roberts agreed on Friday to buy the health care unit of Panasonic for 165 billion yen, or $1.67 billion, as the Japanese company attempts to streamline its operations after two years of losses.
After the deal, New York-based K.K.R. will own 80 percent of Panasonic Healthcare, while Panasonic will retain 20 percent, according to a joint statement. Panasonic said it would cooperate with K.K.R. in managing the health care business.
Panasonic Healthcare manufactures and sells blood glucose monitoring meters and sensors for diabetics. It also produces I.T. equipment for medical clinics, as well as biomedical laboratory equipment like low-temperature freezers.
Panasonic, the Japanese electronics giant that has lost more than $7 billion for two years running, is in the midst of divesting units to focus on its core businesses of electronic appliances, car components and machinery.
On Thursday, Panasonic, which is based in Osaka, said that it would stop the development of smartphones and reallocate its resources.
Panasonic said on Friday it would post an extraordinary gain of 75 billion yen from the sale of the health care unit and reinvest those funds into what it described as growth areas.
‘‘We believe that partnering with K.K.R. will also allow us to learn from K.K.R.’s global operational and business management expertise as we pursue the next stage of growth for Panasonic,’’ the company’s chief executive, Kazuhiro Tsuga, said in a statement on Friday.
K.K.R.’s founder, Henry Kravis, said in a statement that Japan was ‘‘a very important and attractive market for K.K.R., and our experienced team on the ground in Japan looks forward to leveraging KKR’s global expertise and experience.’’
The companies expect the deal to be completed by the end of March 2014.
