Rimac Takes Majority Control of Bugatti, New Entity Named Rimac Group
By Edward A. Sanchez – July 5, 2021
In an inescapable indication of how the automotive landscape is changing, and relatively young companies are taking the lead in innovation and technological development, comes the announcement that Croatian EV supercar and EV tech company Rimac is taking majority control of one of the world’s most exclusive automotive luxury brands, Bugatti.
The newly formed Rimac Group will be the majority shareholder of Bugatti Rimac LLC, the name of the new entity. Rimac Group, which will oversee Bugatti Rimac LLC and Rimac Technology, will hold a 55% stake in Bugatti Rimac and a 100% of Rimac Technology. VWAG performance brand Porsche will hold the remaining 45% stake in Bugatti Rimac LLC.
When it comes to Rimac Group’s ownership, founder Mate Rimac will have a 37% stake, with Porsche holding a 24% stake and the Hyundai Motor Group holding a 12% stake. Other investors hold the remaining 27% stake. Mate Rimac will be Rimac Group’s CEO and lead Bugatti Rimac LLC and Rimac Technology.
As part of the new structure, Rimac Technology will continue to operate as an autonomous contract engineering and manufacturing unit, co-developing and supplying technology to various global automakers. Car and Driver reports that Rimac is currently working with 10 major automotive OEMs, including Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz, and Aston Martin.
Rimac as an automotive brand will continue, and expansion plans are in place for a new €200 million (approximately $240 million) corporate campus, which will serve as the research and development hub for all future Rimac and Bugatti vehicles. Production of Bugatti and Rimac cars will continue to take place at their respective production sites of Molsheim, France, and Zagreb, Croatia.
Rimac and Bugatti are now part of the same company: Bugatti Rimac LLC, led by Rimac Group.
This deal has been rumored for some time, but for some, seemed too far-fetched to be true. The idea that a more than century-old iconic ultra-luxury brand could be acquired by a barely decade-old Eastern European startup whose start was in swapping a forklift motor into a BMW E30 3 Series seemed too unbelievable. But here we are.
In 1899, there were more than 2,000 automotive brands in the U.S. Today, there are three domestic legacy OEMs (one of which is foreign owned) and what I would consider three viable startups: Tesla, Rivian, and Lucid. In the course of the 20th century, many brands saw their rise and fall, that at one time were thought to be around for decades or centuries more.
Some believe the automotive industry is at a similar transformational and revolutionary stage, as electrification has gone from trendy fad to a full-fledged revolution, brought about by a heightened consciousness of environmental issues and the effects of climate change, and the unavoidable reality of global governmental regulation. While we may not be up to our ankles in horse manure (as was the case in places such as New York City at the turn of the 20 century), the effect of the cumulative billions of internal-combustion cars globally over more than a century can no longer be ignored.
While Rimac and Bugatti are now under the Rimac Group umbrella, don’t forget that Porsche owns nearly a quarter of Rimac Group.
Although many may have a nostalgia for manual transmissions, the art of “heel-and-toe” braking and throttle-matching, the mechanical symphony of valvetrains, synchros, and exhaust notes, the inexorable advance of technology cannot be stopped, and internal combustion enthusiasts need to prepare themselves for the inevitable end of the internal-combustion engine as a current technology, and be satisfied with its eventual place in historic parades and festivals. Rimac’s de facto takeover of Bugatti is one of the most tangible and stark examples of the new era of personal transportation.
(Images courtesy Rimac Group)
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