Ford put Jaguar and Land
Rover up for sale last June
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Car giant Ford
is to sell its luxury UK-based car marques Jaguar and Land Rover
to Indian company Tata.
Tata, India's biggest vehicle maker, is
likely to pay about $2bn (£1bn) in the deal, although analysts
will be keen to see the exact price and terms.
The sale process started last June when
Ford announced its intention to sell the companies as a package.
Jaguar and Land Rover employ about 16,000
staff at plants across the West Midlands and Merseyside.
Tata accounts for more than half of the
sub-continent's truck market and has about 20% of India's car
market.
Union backing
The car workers union, Unite, has said
that Tata was the preferred bidder for the company.
Jaguar and Land Rover require hundreds of
millions in investment over the next few years and returning
Jaguar to profitability will neither be easy or without risks,
he says.
Our business editor adds that, to reassure
the workforce, Ford will inject £300m into Jaguar and Land Rover
pension funds.
Jaguar losses
In January, Tata launched the world's
cheapest car, the Nano, priced at $2,500 (£1,250).
By contrast, the starting price for
Jaguar's latest sports car, the XF is more than £32,000
($64,000).
Tata unveiled the world's
cheapest car the "Nano" this year
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Ford has never given any details about
Jaguar's financial performance.
But it is thought that Ford has invested
about $10bn in Jaguar since buying it in 1989, for $2.5bn.
Despite that investment, analysts say that
Jaguar, which has plants at Castle Bromwich, West Midlands and
Halewood, Merseyside, has never made a profit for Ford.
However, Land Rover, which is based in
Solihull, West Midlands, has been profitable under Ford's
ownership.
