A load of crap from an idle brain

Anyone got spare change?

Finally, the beast and the beauty kept their rendezvous with India. The niche, but growing, club of luxury car owners on Sunday got a booster shot with Tata Motors ushering in the British auto icons Jaguar and Land Rover (JLR) after almost a year of acquiring them from Ford Motor Co.

A hot cat, Bollywood hearthrob Hrithik Roshan owns a Jag, or any of the three Rover models Discovery 3, Range Rover and Range Rover Sport would cost anything between Rs 65 lakh to Rs 1 crore. A Tourbillion, the most expensive watch from the Dior stable, too comes at the higher end of that range.

Tata Motors chairman Ratan Tata said, “This launch heralds the entry of Jaguar Land Rover brands in India. The brands in days gone by were well received in India. However, in the last few years, they had been disconnected with consumers here.”

The India foray comes at a time when worldwide sales of luxury cars are falling. The global meltdown dragged JLR into huge losses as consumers halted purchases. Sales, after the $2.5 billion takeover by Tata Motors last June, dropped a third to 1.67 lakh vehicles.

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I had sometime earlier read about the British denying of an steel plant to JN Tata in the early 1900s which lead to him starting a steel company in India which finally led to Tata Steel. Today, Ratan Tata, the descendant of the enterprising pioneer has bought over the mega steel company Corus and two of the most iconic British automobile brands (Jaguar and Land Rover). Though Deccan Chronicle might be trying to create a story out of nothing, its still an interesting read.

The low profile Tata chairman, Mr Ratan Tata, has more than avenged the scorn that the British had first poured over his forefather and founder of Tata Steel, Jamshedji N. Tata with the signing and sealing of the deal involving the takeover of the iconic Jaguar-Land Rover brands.

According to history J.N. Tata, a big name in textiles, got the idea of a steel plant when he was on a trip to Manchester. He had set his mind on building a steel plant that would rival the best in the world. But as he found, steel was not as easy as building textile mills.

He had wanted to raise funds for his steel venture but it was met with scepticism by the British who were in the throes of the industrial revolution. As his biographer Frank Harris said Tata found his path blocked at every turn with the curious impediments which dog the steps of pioneers who attempt to modernise the East. There was Sir Frederick Upcott, chief commissioner of the Great Indian Penninsula Railway, who promised to ‘eat every pound of steel rail Tata succeeded in making.’

But Tata persisted and succeeded. In 1900 he met the secretary of state for India, Lord George Hamilton, in England. He was a man in a hurry as he bulldozed his way. He went from there to the US where he consulted Julian Kennedy, a leading metallurgist, and later met Charles Page Pertin who he wanted to take charge of building the plant in India.

Meanwhile, he advised his office in Bombay and it was known then, to obtain prospecting licences. But he passed away in 1904 and the steel plant took its first step in February 1908 when the first stake was driven in. The first blast furnace was blown in on December 2, 1911, and the first ingot was rolled out on February 16, 1912. One does not know if Sir Frederick was around and whether the steel ingots formed part of his diet then.

Now two centuries later, his successor Ratan Tata, literally took Britain by storm when he first took over Corus and then bid successfully for Jaguar-Land Rover. There was the same scepticism about a third world country taking over Corus and JLR. In fact in the US, dealers were appalled that an Indian should be taking over JLR as they thought it would reduce their ritzy luxury qualities. But Tata Motors prevailed and these British brands are now firmly hitched in Tata stable.

Article from: Deccan Chronicle

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Its official. India’s Tata Motors has finally bought Jaguar and Land Rover from Ford Motors. The exact pricing is to be unveiled today. But estimates are around 1 billion pounds. Finally after months of intense negotiations, Tata Motors will lay hands on two of the world’s most iconic automobile brands. The product profile of Tata Motors will now include the world’s cheapest car, Nano to expensive products like the Jaguar and Land Rover.

Earlier, there was news that Ratan Tata was interested in taking a stake in Ferrari. With this deal, the Tata group now holds on to some of the most iconic brands in the world which include Corus Steel, Tetley Tea, Ritz Carlton hotel in Boston, Jaguar and Land Rover.

Thousands of workers at Jaguar and Land Rover plants are expected to be told today that the marques have been sold to the Indian conglomerate Tata.

It is understood that a deal between Tata and Ford over the sale of two of the best known names in British car making was concluded last night after months of painstaking negotiations.

Ford refused to confirm a deal had been signed last night, saying any significant development had to be communicated to employees first. However, formal confirmation that the two sides have reached agreement is expected via simultaneous announcements in India, Britain and the US at around noon GMT today.

The companies have been in detailed negotiations for almost three months after Tata emerged as the leading bidder, ahead of rivals One Equity, a private equity concern, and automotive group Mahindra and Mahindra.

Yesterday the two sides were refusing to be drawn on reports from India that Tata had agreed to pay $2.65bn (£1.3bn) for the marques. The Reuters news agency quoted a source close to the deal as saying: “That figure of $2.65bn is highly unlikely. You have to come south from that by quite a bit.”

Full article here

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