Tag Archives: Investment

News

The future of Maserati is uncertain

Lately, Maserati has been fighting a tough battle to survive, and now comes another bad news that could further complicate the future of the Italian brand. According to the latest information, Stellantis gave up an investment of 1.5 billion dollars, which would have been a large injection and a possible way out of the current crisis.

In an interview with Autocar, Stellantis’ chief financial officer Doug Ostermann said that the company must review its plans, which includes abandoning investments. “We have to recognize the dynamics in this business, especially in the Chinese market, and our expectations in terms of how quickly the luxury market will switch to electrification,” Doug Ostermann said.

This decision will particularly hit Maserati, whose sales are not at the expected level, and sales results for 2024 show that the brand is recording large losses. In 2024, Maserati sold only 11,300 cars (- 57.5%) and made a financial loss of 260 million euros. This situation could put a large number of jobs at risk, so the FIM union has scheduled a meeting with Maserati management for March 11.

“Maserati is in one of the most critical situations. Despite its quality and high-performance models, the brand is suffering from marketing mistakes and negligence. We can no longer waste time,” said FIM Secretary General Ferdinando Uliano.

It remains to be seen whether Maserati will survive the current crisis or become another Italian brand that has become a thing of the past.

Source: Autocar

News

Russia invests over $900 million in the automotive industry

In February 2022, Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine, which caused a reaction from the international community and the introduction of sanctions that forced many manufacturers to stop production in Russia. The sanctions were expected to bring the Russian economy to its knees, which happened at first, but recent information suggests that the Russians have found a solution for their automotive industry. The Russian government intends to invest up to $ 900 million in the development of a platform for their new car over the next three years.

Most of the funds come from the Russian parliament, and the project is led by NAMI (automotive institute). NAMI owns the premium brand Aurus Motors, which produces limousines for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“By designing such a modular platform, we are laying the foundation for the development of our automobile production. It will be used for cars of various classes, from compact to business. NAMI will play a leading role in this project, and the main task is to unify the component base for this platform. The new platform will also be used for the serial production of hybrid and especially electric vehicles in the future,” said Alexey Matushansky, Director of the Department for Strategic Development and Corporate Policy at the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

The batteries for the car will be produced by Rosatom (the Russian state atomic energy company), and the construction of two battery production plants is underway.

The Russians have previously tried to restore the production of European-brand cars, but illegally. In early 2024, information appeared that the Chinese manufacturer Dongfeng Motor Group, Stellantis’ partner in China, supplied parts to the Russian company Automotive Technologies, which began assembling the Citroen C5 Aircross. This was not the first time that Chinese companies violated agreements with other manufacturers, and this time the reason could be the agreement that Stellantis reached with another Chinese company (Leapmotor).

Customs records did not show that Stellantis knew about the imports, but evidence obtained by other companies shows a lack of control over their brands in Russia after leaving the country.

Source: Reuters

News

Leapmotor suspends investments in Poland

Carlos Tavares was looking forward to a very successful future when a few months ago it was confirmed that the first electric cars from the Chinese manufacturer Leapmotor would leave the factory in Tychy. However, before it even started, everything fell apart because Leapmotor decided to stop investing in the factory in Poland.

It’s a project that Leapmotor was supposed to launch with one of the world’s largest automotive conglomerates, Stellantis, but at the end of last month, the Chinese government called on its manufacturers to immediately stop investing in Europe in response to the imposition of tariffs on their products.

Not all EU members were in favor of introducing additional tariffs on Chinese products, such as Germany, Hungary, Malta, Slovenia or Slovakia, but 10 of them stood by the decision that the new tariffs will protect the European market. One of them is Poland, so China started to take revenge.

In the factory in Tychy, semi-finished products are assembled, and the Chinese company has informed the Polish Trade and Investment Agency that, according to the order of the Chinese Ministry of Economy, it is suspending investments in Poland.

The only model that Leapmotor will produce in Poland for now is the T03, and the first cars will leave the production lines in the coming weeks.

Source: Reuters