Tata Motors and Volkswagen set to launch jointly developed products by 2019
The automakers signed a ‘long-term partnership’, by which Skoda Auto will take the lead on the German company’s behalf.
Tata Motors and the Volkswagen Group are set to develop products in partnership and to share components and technology, as per a new deal made public on Friday. The German automaker’s Skoda Auto will take the lead “to drive forward work towards development of vehicle concepts in the economy segment”, Tata Motors said in a statement.
The jointly-made vehicles are expected to be rolled out by 2019.
A “long-term partnership” was finalised in a memorandum of understanding that was signed on Wednesday by Tata Motors CEO Guenter Butschek, VW Chief Executive Matthias Muller and Skoda CEO Bernhard Maier. With this deal, Volkswagen is looking to make greater inroads into the Indian market by tapping into Tata’s steady base.
Butschek believes the contract will allow both companies to “leverage from each other’s strengths to create synergies and develop smart innovative solutions for the Indian and overseas market”. Muller said working with Tata Motors will enable VW “to offer customer-oriented mobility solutions in the emerging, fast-growing automobile markets, as elsewhere”.