AUTONEWS

McLaren passes into Arab hands

These are difficult times for car manufacturers and McLaren was one of those on the tightrope. Although its situation is far from similar to that of manufacturers in serious trouble like Fisker, the acquisition of the British manufacturer by its hitherto majority shareholder guarantees it a much more solid and stable future.

As we mentioned in the title of this article, the new owner comes from the Middle East. We are talking about Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company, the sovereign wealth fund of the Kingdom of Bahrain, better known as Mumtalakat. This increased its stake in the company from 60 to 100%, which provides McLaren with the lifeline it needs to develop its next generation of cars.

As highlighted by the group's executive president, Paul Walsh, “the measure will allow us to focus even more on fulfilling our long-term business plan”. This includes receiving large doses of financing to be able to invest in new products and technologies, with an SUV on the horizon and an electric sports car scheduled for 2028, among other news.

Remembering that, since the pandemic, it has been difficult times for the British super sports car manufacturer based in Woking. Financial problems in recent years have led the company to sell some of its historic vehicles in 2022 to finance the Artura. That same year, we also saw a new general director. A year earlier, McLaren sold its Formula 1 headquarters and factory.

Paul Walsh also indicated that “we are pleased with Mumtalakat’s continued commitment to McLaren through this agreement (…) including investment in new products and technologies, whilst continuing to explore potential technical partnerships with industry partners.” This last topic is, without a doubt, a significant fact, although we know little more about it at the moment.

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