Interest in buying AML....may be12 Jun 2022 22:59
The Germans are also said to be inclined to check out the passenger car division, but after the rocky McLaren experience, they now insist on an early due diligence check – which takes at least four weeks and won´t be completed before early July. Apparently, Lucid Motors is also interested in developing a joint electric sports car architecture with Aston, but the cash-poor Americans would need a wealthy backer to make this off-beat programme fly.
The darkest horse in this autojumble is Geely. The Chinese MB affiliate, which already owns Lotus, Polestar, Volvo and Seekr, has repeatedly voiced a strong interest in Aston. It has the money to buy the company outright, but might alternatively provide access to Lotus and Seekr technology in exchange for a to be decided number of shares.
Unlike the colourful amateur investors who have been running the on-off Aston Martin show with mixed fortunes for most of the century, the Geely chairman Li Shufu has the power, the vision and the network to turn AML into a serious player in the premium sport-luxury market. Thanks to the Mercedes connection, the future product plan mapped out by the departed CEO Tobias Moers could be easily confirmed or reinstated, using AMG architectures, OS and drivetrains as planned...