PSA Boss Affirms Interest in Adding Luxury Brand

PSA Group CEO Carlos Tavares says he is evaluating all opportunities, including buying or partnering with a luxury brand such as Tata Motors Ltd.’s Jaguar Land Rover unit.

A luxury marque would be a good fit with the European carmaker’s current brands, which consists of Citroen, DS, Peugeot and Opel/Vauxhall, Tavares tells Autocar India. He adds that any deal would have to create value for PSA and not distract from the company’s efforts to expand into the U.S., China and Russia.

Tavares says PSA has no specific targets and has not held any discussions with Tata about JLR. Tata reiterates that it is committed to the unit, which it acquired from Ford in 2008, and asserts there are no divestiture plans.

Earlier this year, Tavares and PSA’s founding Peugeot family indicated the company was open to partnerships or an acquisition similar to the 2017 purchase of Opel from General Motors Co. PSA has €9 billion ($10.2 billion) in cash for acquisitions or partnerships.

Analysts consider JLR as a good partner for PSA. The British company continues to struggle with slumping demand for diesel-powered vehicles, the effect of the U.S.-China trade war and worries about the impact of the U.K. leaving the European Union.

Tavares notes that PSA, which rebounded from its own financial woes in 2015, posted record financial results last year with the addition of Opel, which had long been struggling under GM. Turning around a company, Tavares says, is “something we know how to do.”