Porsche forms new supercar maker Bugatti-Rimac in joint venture deal
Volkswagen will relinquish direct control of Bugatti as Porsche and Rimac take controlling stakes in the new company.
These two are shacking up.
There's a new supercar maker in town. Everyone, meet Bugatti-Rimac. Those are two familiar names you may recognize, but with help from Porsche, the new joint venture is charting a course for the future of supercars. On Monday, Porsche announced the company's creation as Volkswagen, Bugatti's current owner, hands off the storied French marque to Porsche. Porsche, in turn, will marry Bugatti to the joint venture company. However, both Bugatti and Rimac will continue to exist as separate entities.
Essentially, Porsche wants to help position Bugatti better for a future that's bound to include a host of electrification technologies. Rimac, once a Croatian startup that now builds seriously incredible supercars, is a proper partner. Porsche will hold a direct 45% stake in the JV, while Rimac takes the other 55%. The former also directly holds a 24% stake in Rimac, too.
"We are combining Bugatti's strong expertise in the hypercar business with Rimac's tremendous innovative strength in the highly promising field of electric mobility," Porsche CEO Oliver Blume said in a statement. "Bugatti is contributing a tradition-rich brand, iconic products, a loyal customer base and a global dealer organization to the joint venture."
To start, not much changes for both company's product portfolios. Bugatti-Rimac will build Bugatti's Chiron and Rimac's Nevera. In the future, Rimac will have a heavy hand in helping develop future French supercars, though. Don't worry about the gorgeous and masterful Bugatti production plant in Molsheim; the factory isn't going anywhere. All future Bugatti vehicles will still be made at the facility.
Porsche said it will play a "strong role" in the JV as a strategic partner as Bugatti and Rimac learn from one another. The companies expect Bugatti-Rimac to become official in the fourth quarter of 2021 with headquarters in Zagreb, Croatia, and 430 employees to start.
