Special Unit To Rev Up Proton-lotus Synergies

[Mark H]

PROTON Holdings Bhd is setting up a special unit to enhance synergies between the national car maker and its UK subsidiary, Lotus, as part of the latter's five-year turnaround plan, sources close to the companies said.

 

 

The unit will specialise in high-performance car manufacture and engineering consultancy, they said.

 

"The plan is in the final stage. The unit will be made up of executives from Proton and Lotus," said a source.

 

The Proton management, the source said, believes that Lotus will play a significant role in fast tracking its ambitions to become a global automotive brand.

 

"This unit will serve a dual role of tapping synergies between the two companies and integrate Lotus' engineering expertise into Proton's cars.

 

"While Proton will get new car breeds, it will also reduce time to market for the Malaysian national car," the source added.

 

As a first step in its five-year strategy to turn it around, Lotus has initiated talks with several global car companies to produce Lotus-branded versions of their cars, said another source.

 

"What this means is that Lotus will revert to what it had implemented successfully before this in the form of Lotus Cortina for Ford, Chrysler's Lotus Sunbeam and Vauxhall's Lotus Carlton."

 

Through this move, Lotus will have a dual strike strategy in enhancing its brand while bumping up its revenue. It will also speed up time to market Lotus cars as well as double Lotus' output of specialist sports cars, the source said.

 

Lotus has already signed contracts with four Chinese car makers, including Nanjing Automobile Corp, the buyer of MG Rover's assets, to develop engines and provide chassis engineering for the MG cars for production mid-next year.

 

Currently producing 4,000 sports cars a year at its Norfolk plant in the UK, Lotus has an annual production capacity of 8,000 cars a year.

 

A dual-branded Lotus sports car will lift the production to 16,000 units a year.

 

Lotus saw a shake-up when Michael Kimberley returned to the company recently, replacing Kim Ogaard-Nielsen as chief executive.

 

Kimberley ran Lotus for over 20 years before leaving to join Lamborghini in 1991, and General Motors to oversee its Asia Pacific operations.

 

He was appointed by Proton to Lotus' supervisory board last year.

 

Since Kimberley's return to Lotus, he has made an active push for its engineering consultancy business which used to contribute to half of Lotus' turnover.

 

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