Volkswagen Group turns over control of Bugatti to Croatian hypercar startup Rimac Automobili with the formation of a joint venture called Bugatti Rimac.
Under the deal pending regulatory approval and set to take effect in the fourth quarter, the newly formed Rimac Group will hold 55% of the JV and Volkswagen’s Porsche brand will hold 45%.
The JV will be headed by Mate Rimac, who started Rimac Automobili as a one-man operation in a garage in 2009 – 100 years after Bugatti’s founding. Mate Rimac will retain his original shareholding in Rimac Group at 37%, with Porsche holding 24%, Hyundai Motor Group 12% and other investors, 27%.
Bugatti will remain headquartered in Molsheim, France, while Rimac Group will stay near Zagreb, Croatia, building its own electric hypercars and developing systems and technologies for global OEMs. Bugatti and Rimac will continue as separate respective brands, retaining existing hypercar production facilities and distribution channels.
The development, production and supply of battery systems, drivetrains and other electric vehicle components will be separated into a new entity also headed by Mate Rimac (pictured, below left): Rimac Technology, an independent company 100% owned by the Rimac Group.
Bugatti Rimac will draw on Bugatti’s expertise in manufacturing and craftsmanship, carbon fiber and other lightweight materials, and small series production, as well as an experienced network of global dealership partners.
Bugatti Rimac’s global headquarters, due to open in 2023, will be situated at the recently announced Rimac Campus, also serving as the home of Rimac Technology. The €200 million ($236 million), 1.08 million-sq.-ft. (100,000 sq.-m) campus will have 2,500 employees and serve as the R&D base for all future Rimac and Bugatti hypercars.
Bugatti, founded in 1909, had gone out of business twice before Volkswagen bought the brand for $50 million in 1998 after acquiring Rolls-Royce and Lamborghini.
Porsche confirmed in March it had invested a further €70 million ($83 million) in Rimac, a move increasing its equity stake from 15.5% to 24%. The German automaker made its first investment in 2018, giving it an initial 10% shareholding. A second investment made in 2019 raised Porsche’s stake to 15.5%.
Despite the increase in investment, Porsche said it would not exercise a controlling influence in Rimac.
Speculation has linked Rimac with the development of components for new, yet-to-be-announced high-powered electric-powered models from Porsche and Bugatti.
“We are combining Bugatti's strong expertise in the hyper sports car business with Rimac's tremendous innovative strength in the highly promising field of electric mobility,” says Oliver Blume, chairman of the executive board at Porsche AG.
Adds Mate Rimac, “This is a truly exciting moment in the short, yet rapidly expanding history of Rimac Automobili, and this new venture takes things to a completely new level.”
