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NEW DELHI: India's Tata Motors has signed a multi-billion-dollar deal with ailing US automaker Ford to buy luxury British icons Jaguar and Land Rover, the Press Trust of India reported Wednesday.
The agency put the value of the deal at 2.0 to 2.5 billion US dollars.
Quoting unnamed sources close to the issue, PTI said the deal was signed late on Tuesday and that a formal announcement would be made later Wednesday at 1200 GMT.
Contacted by AFP, Tata Motors spokesman Debasis Ray declined to confirm the PTI report.
"We will make an announcement at the appropriate time," he said.
There have been a flurry of reports this week that Tata was poised to sign a deal to buy Jaguar and Land Rover, which would mark the Indian company's first drive into luxury motoring terrain.
Tata Motors is India's top vehicles maker, controlling more than half of the country's truck market and nearly 20 per cent of its passenger car market, and is keen to expand beyond Asia.
With the purchase, Tata would be in the unusual position of making two of the world's most prestigious brands along with its least costly cars.
In January, the company unveiled the world's cheapest car, costing 2,500 US dollars, amid predictions the no-frills vehicle could revolutionise how millions in India and elsewhere travel.
Ford, which announced it was selling Jaguar and Land Rover last year as part of a restructuring after posting a record 12.6 billion US dollar loss, named Tata as the preferred bidder for the two marques in January. - AFP/ac
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