Jaguar-Land Rover officially sold (2008)

By Ben Pulman

Motor Industry

02 June 2008 15:37

Jaguar and Land Rover are now officially Indian-owned. The sale of the two iconic British brands was completed today, and ownership has now passed from Ford to Tata in exchange for $2.3bn in cash (£1.17bn). The sale means Jag/LR is debt-free, with none of the money used to fund the purchase being offset against the pair’s worth.

The sale gives Tata the ownership of Jaguar and Land Rover, all the necessary intellectual property rights, the manufacturing plants, two design centres and the sales chain. Agreements have also been signed for long-term use of Ford engines and future co-operation on hybrids and other powertrain developments. Ford has also coughed up around $600m for Jag/LR’s pension coffers.

The official handover ceremony took place at Gaydon, with Ratan Tata and new Jag/LR CEO David Smith present. David Smith had been acting CEO of the company since Geoff Polites passed away in April 2008.

Smith leaves his full time position as Jag/LR’s chief financial officer. At today's ceremony, he said: ‘We are very pleased with the association with Tata Motors. We look forward to a sustained bright future for the company and its stakeholders.’

By Ben Pulman