Tata Motors and Skoda Auto have called off talks for a potential long-term partnership for development and production of passenger vehicles in India.
Tata Motors had earlier signed an MoU with Volkswagen Group and Skoda Auto for joint technical feasibility and commercial evaluation of a potential collaboration. However, talks could not progress. “Based on intense and constructive discussions, both the companies jointly concluded that the envisioned areas of partnership may not yield the desired synergies,” Tata Motors said.
Skoda Auto in a statement said, “Both companies have concluded that at present, neither the technical nor the economic synergies are achievable to the extent desired by both parties. As a result, a planned strategic alliance will no longer be pursued for the time being.”
However, the companies have decided to stay in touch for future areas of collaborations.
“We have evaluated the technical feasibility and degree of synergies for the envisioned partnership. We have concluded that the strategic benefits for both parties are below the threshold levels,” Guenter Butschek, CEO and Managing Director, Tata Motors said in a statement.
However, we remain positive of exploring future opportunities with the Volkswagen group, given the relationship of mutual respect that we witnessed during the phase of our cooperation discussions."
He said Tata Motors will continue to pursue its standalone product strategy to bring world-class products to its customers.