Rumblings about Volkswagen selling off Bugatti to Croatian electric supercar maker Rimac are getting louder again.
The rumblings around oft-discussed move by Volkswagen AG to sell off its supercar brand, Bugatti, got a little louder this week.
Porsche AG CEO Oliver Blume told Germany’s Automobilwoche that Bugatti and Rimac Automobili, the Croatian electric hypercar company, are well suited, technologically speaking, for each other. Rimac has been considered the lead candidate to buy Bugatti if VW puts it on the market.
“At the moment there are intense deliberations on how Bugatti can be developed in the best possible way. Rimac could play a role here because the brands are a good technological fit,” Blume told the publication.
Deal could come in first half of 2021
“There are various scenarios with different structures. I believe that the issue will be decided by the group in the first half of the year,” said Blume, who holds a seat on the management board of parent Volkswagen AG. He was also quick to say that a deal was not imminent.
Rimac founder and CEO Mate Rimac is reportedly still interested in acquiring Bugatti.
Reports surfaced last year that Rimac and VW were close to a deal. According to British auto magazine Car, the deal called for Bugatti to shift over to Rimac, but Porsche AG would increase its stake in the Rimac as part of the deal.
It currently holds a 15.5% share of, after taking an initial stake of 10 percent in 2018.
There are plenty of others with an ownership stake in the electric supercar maker, including Hyundai, Jaguar and Koenigsegg.
Not the only brand VW may have on the market
The magazine also indicated VW may be ready to unload other parts of its empire, including the only slightly less exclusive Lamborghini, as well as Spanish mainstream brand Seat and other operations.
Porsche could raise its stake in Rimac as part of the deal.
However, Porsche’s move to increase its stake in Rimac is a bit curious as VW is also considering selling off part of the legendary German sports car maker.
Reports last week suggested VW is pondering a listing of Porsche AG, the money raised designed to help with the rollout more than $86 billion in electric vehicles set to come mid-decade. German business publication Manager Magzin reported the plan is only in the discussion stage.
The listing, which reportedly could net as much $30 billion, would only be for part of the sports car maker and wouldn’t occur until next year, the publication reported. Some analysts believe if Porsche AG were to be spun off entirely it could be worth more than $120 billion.