autoevolution
 

Ford and Mahindra Drop Plans for Joint Venture in India

Ford is undoubtedly one of the world’s major players in the automotive sector. But whereas the Blue Oval is a big name in Europe and the U.S., not the same can be said for the world’s largest auto market, China, and the soon-to-be-possibly-bigger India.
Ford Endeavour Sport 1 photo
Photo: Ford India
For the past couple of years, Ford has been trying to make a more solid name for itself in those two countries as well. In India, it bet heavily on a partnership with Mahindra, which at the end of 2019 was announced it would turn into a local joint venture.

The agreement was supposed to move some of Ford’s local operations under the control of the new joint venture, including its personnel and assembly plants in Chennai and Sanand. The engine plant operations in Sanand, the Global Business Services unit, Ford Credit, and Ford Smart Mobility would have remained under the control of the Americans.

The joint venture, valued at $275 million, was also supposed to be in charge of making three new utility vehicles, starting with a midsize one based on a Mahindra platform, and later with producing electric vehicles as well.

Now, after a full year of fighting the effects of a pandemic that has spread far beyond the medical aspects of our lives, both Ford and Mahindra announced the joint venture would not happen, as the December 31 deadline passed without a definitive agreement being reached.

“Ford Motor Company and Mahindra & Mahindra have mutually and amicably determined they will not complete a previously announced automotive joint venture between their respective companies,” Ford said in a statement.

“The outcome was driven by fundamental changes in global economic and business conditions – caused, in part, by the global pandemic – over the past 15 months. Those changes influenced separate decisions by Ford and Mahindra to reassess their respective capital allocation priorities.”

The Americans say the current operations in India will continue as they did until now.
If you liked the article, please follow us:  Google News icon Google News Youtube Instagram X (Twitter)
press release
About the author: Daniel Patrascu
Daniel Patrascu profile photo

Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies.
Full profile

 

Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?

You will only receive our top stories