DRB-Hicom is opened to options and might sell Lotus
By Andrew, 18 Jan, 2012. 0 Comments
2015 Lotus Eterne Concept
As you may know already, on Monday we announced that Malaysian billionaire Syed Mokhtar Al-Bulkhary's DRB-Hicom will buy Proton Holdings, the Australian manufacturer which owns Lotus. The next question was: what will happen to Lotus and its new business plan? Apparently, DRB-Hicom is "open to options,", according to managing director Mohd Khamil Jamil. Jamil also added that the company “can’t do due diligence on Lotus earlier so will need time to look into Lotus”.
DRB-Hicom agreed to buy a 42.7 percent stake in Proton owned by Khazanah Nasional, the Malaysian government's investment arm, for $414 million. An additional 7.7 percent stake was bought in the open market, taking its total holding beyond 50 percent. There are very big chances to sell Lotus, as the British manufacturer hasn't made any profit since 1996, when Proton bought it.
When the new CEO Dany Bahar came at Lotus, he unveiled a bold plan to become a rival to Porsche at the 2010 Paris Auto Show, where it showed five new sports car concepts. "We need to sit down with Lotus management and look at their plans before arriving at a definitive decision," Mohd Khamil said, according to Autonews. "It has been there for years and has done some good things."
Regarding the possible sale, here is what Lotus had to say: "As far as we are aware, the situation changes nothing for Lotus. Proton's support in our development remains very strong and our focus is on the delivery of the business plan."
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