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Rimac, the Croatian electric hypercar start-up, will take control of Volkswagen’s Bugatti brand in an agreement that consolidates its position as a consolidated force in the automobile.
The new company will be called Bugatti Rimac and will be led by Mate Rimac, who founded the eponymous group in 2009 in your garage and has made it one of the most sought-after technology providers in the industry.
The company’s electrical and battery systems have found their way into cars from Aston Martin and Pininfarina to Jaguar, and VW’s Seat brand racing arm.
Being controlled by an electricity specialist is also an important outlet for Bugatti, which sells its hypercars with 16-cylinder engines and guttural tones.
However, the advent of battery technology has led to speeds that even the most refined combustion vehicles have difficulty matching: the next Rimac Fridge is expected to be the fastest model ever built. , a title that already had the Bugatti Chiron.
Rimac said Bugatti would have an electric model this decade, but would still produce hybrid models by the end of that period. “We can have two parallel and very different product lines,” Rimac said, comparing a Bugatti with a Swiss watch and a Rimac with an Apple Watch.
According to the agreement announced on Monday, Rimac, with the support of Porsche and Hyundai, will own 55% of the new company, while VW’s Porsche brand will own the rest.
This means that Porsche will control 58.2% of the final company through its existing shares in Rimac if its stake in Rimac is included, although the companies said the vehicle manufacturer will have no opinion on the operation of the combined unit. No money changed hands through the deal, Porsche boss Oliver Blume said Monday.
It also brings Rimac further under the umbrella of VW, as the German company undertakes a € 35 billion power boost, although the Croatian company will expand its business unit that builds technology for other vehicle manufacturers.
Both Bugatti and Rimac will continue to develop their brands, and although Bugatti’s production will remain in France, all of its research will be moved to Rimac’s new headquarters in Croatia.
Mate Rimac, 32, owns 37% of the company himself, which translates into a 20.4% stake in the new Bugatti Rimac group.
“Rimac and Bugatti are a perfect combination when it comes to the table. As a young, agile and fast automotive and technology company, we have established ourselves as industry pioneers in electrical technologies, ”he said.
He added that the hypermarket business “should be self-sustaining and profitable on its own.”
On Monday, separately, Porsche’s local rival, Daimler, confirmed that it will group three of its luxury brands – AMG, G-Class and Maybach – into a business unit this autumn, to position itself more effectively in the ” luxury and performance segment “.
Porsche’s decision to put Bugatti into a joint venture will raise hopes among VW investors that similar assets within the group, increasingly outdated with the company’s attempt to lead the electrical transformation, will be withdrawn or sold.
Last December, following a clash between VW chief Herbert Diess and powerful German unions, the company’s supervisory board said there was “agreement on the board that Lamborghini and Ducati would continue to be part of the Volkswagen group.” .
In May, Volkswagen rejected a € 7.5 billion bid for Lamborghini for a Swiss-based investment vehicle led by Rea Stark, who also founded an electric vehicle launch with Toni Piech, son of the former president of VW.
But pressure from capital markets to divest these brands has been on the rise. “The message is‘ forget the toys, ’” said someone familiar with the discussions between VW and investors.
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