McLaren Group has just found itself a new owner – Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company. The sovereign wealth fund of the Kingdom of Bahrain has taken full ownership of the British carmaker, expanding its stake in the company from 60% to 100%.
Commenting on the new ownership, McLaren Executive Chairman, Paul Walsh is delighted at Mumtalakat’s continued commitment to the British brand, which strengthens their ownership and governance structure. Walsh also mentioned that Bahrain being the carmaker’s new owner “will further enable us [McLaren] to focus on delivering our long-term business plan, including investment in new products and technologies, whilst continuing to explore potential technical partnerships with industry partners.”
Thanks to its new owner, McLaren should now have the funds to develop its new models, as well as electrify its current lineup. In the past few years, the British carmaker was hit by financial issues, causing it to sell some of its historic products in 2022 to fund the development of its Artura supercar. The company even sold its headquarters and Formula 1 factory in Woking, UK a year prior.
Mumtalakat Chief Executive Officer, His Excellency Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa said, “Today’s announcement crystallizes the next phase of the company’s trajectory of growing its leadership position in the luxury super car and motorsports industries. This reorganisation and new simplified structure positions McLaren for success and opens up strategic avenues, which include exploring new partnerships to enhance the company’s growth over the coming years.”
“The completion of this process is also a significant milestone that reflects our support for McLaren’s continued innovation and long-term commitment to excellence,” he added.
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McLaren continues to see a strong customer demand for its range of supercars and hypercars. There are also rumours suggesting that the carmaker’s new hypercar could make its debut by the end of this year.
The development of the said hypercar is already at its final stages, as the carmaker is already “fine-tuning” it. The car is also said to be powered by a V8 plug-in hybrid (PHEV) powertrain, pushing out more than 1,000 hp.
McLaren CEO, Michael Leiters, even admitted that the brand’s past few models were “non-mature products”. With Bahrain taking charge, and most importantly, funding McLaren’s pocket, the British carmaker should now have the resources it needs to build more exciting products and further innovate its technologies without being distracted by financial worries.
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