Indian business tycoon Ratan Tata passes away at 86
The former chairman of Tata Group which is the parent organisation of Jaguar Land Rover, Ratan Naval Tata, has died, aged 86.
While many of the automotive products of Tata Motors themselves have remained India-centric, Ratan Tata’s global vision saw the Tata Group acquire some big names and he was directly involved with some bold ideas for affordable mobility that earned him further global acclaim in the automotive landscape. His automotive journey globally has been long and expansive, and Australia wasn’t immune to his impact.
Ratan Tata was awarded Australia's highest civilian award in April 2023. The Order of Australia was awarded to him for his outstanding contributions to Australia-India relations, notably trade, investment and philanthropy.
“Ratan Tata is a titan of business, industry & philanthropy not just in India, but his contributions have also made a significant impact in Australia. Delighted to confer Order of Australia (AO) honour to Ratan Tata in recognition of his longstanding commitment to the Australia-India relationship,” Barry O’Farrell, the Australian High Commissioner to India, had stated at the time.
The India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement, which was implemented in 2022, marked a significant milestone. Tata Consultancy's Australian branch, established in 1998, now boasts the largest Australian workforce of any Indian company, employing around 17,000 people. In addition, Tata Consultancy Services Australia offers IT services to six Australian non-profit organisations entirely free of charge.
The former chairman of Tata Group held the helm for over two decades and put Tata and India on the map globally, made immense strides in the automotive sector during his tenure.
The car for everyone - Tata Nano
Ratan Tata always wanted to ensure that every common citizen of India would be able to afford a car if it only cost INR 100,000 or $1,767 in today’s money. For this ambition to be attained, the major challenge was to make a car that is affordable yet effective and more importantly locally sourced and locally manufactured.
In 2008, Tata presented a microcar called Tata Nano. A rear-wheel drive setup with 27.8 kW and 51 Nm. While the numbers aren’t impressive, the size of the car was enough for it to commute 4 people within urban limits.
The Tata Nano was not able to quite achieve the price parity as envisioned by Ratan Tata and essentially lived out its final days in 2018, unable to justify the investment required to keep it compliant with new safety regulations that kept making the car even more expensive. However, the decade-long journey would inspire a lot of families in India to achieve their lifelong dream of owning a car. The Nano project may have shut down, but that ethos remains as Tata Motors continues to develop affordable EVs today.
The Jaguar and Land Rover acquisition
Tata Motors had just launched Tata Nano and their annual revenue was over $8.8 Billion (USD). While Tata had successfully recovered from its initial losses, Ford’s golden era was coming to an end. In 2006, Ford had their worst year ever losing $12.7 billion (USD). It was in June 2007 when Ford floated a global offer for the sale of JLR.
America’s economic crisis is worsening, Ford is on the verge of bankruptcy and then Tata steps into the conversation and takes Jaguar & Land Rover (JLR) for a meagre $2.3 billion (USD). This is remarkable because Ford had made a statement about how Tata doesn’t know how to make cars and should refrain from doing so. Funnily enough, the cost at which Tata acquired JLR is 60% less than what Ford paid to get JLR in the first place ($5.2 billion). Today, this luxury automotive brand is still here and thriving with its wide range of SUVs, including an all-electric Range Rover due to debut by 2025.
End of a legacy
Ratan Tata was the chairman emeritus of the Tata group and led it through multiple acquisitions which range from Corus Steel, Daewoo Motors, BigBasket and more products across 10+ verticals. While Ratan Tata stepped down from the helm in 2012, he returned shortly as the interim CEO in 2016. Apart from that Mr. Tata remained extremely active in the world of philanthropy donating to charities and providing grants to meritorious students. Ratan Tata has left an indelible mark on the world, whether it is about living a simplistic and humble life, to navigating troubled and testing times and of course, boosting our love of cars.
The former chairman of Tata Group which is the parent organisation of Jaguar Land Rover, Ratan Naval Tata, has died, aged 86.
While many of the automotive products of Tata Motors themselves have remained India-centric, Ratan Tata’s global vision saw the Tata Group acquire some big names and he was directly involved with some bold ideas for affordable mobility that earned him further global acclaim in the automotive landscape. His automotive journey globally has been long and expansive, and Australia wasn’t immune to his impact.
Ratan Tata was awarded Australia's highest civilian award in April 2023. The Order of Australia was awarded to him for his outstanding contributions to Australia-India relations, notably trade, investment and philanthropy.
“Ratan Tata is a titan of business, industry & philanthropy not just in India, but his contributions have also made a significant impact in Australia. Delighted to confer Order of Australia (AO) honour to Ratan Tata in recognition of his longstanding commitment to the Australia-India relationship,” Barry O’Farrell, the Australian High Commissioner to India, had stated at the time.
The India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement, which was implemented in 2022, marked a significant milestone. Tata Consultancy's Australian branch, established in 1998, now boasts the largest Australian workforce of any Indian company, employing around 17,000 people. In addition, Tata Consultancy Services Australia offers IT services to six Australian non-profit organisations entirely free of charge.
The former chairman of Tata Group held the helm for over two decades and put Tata and India on the map globally, made immense strides in the automotive sector during his tenure.
The car for everyone - Tata Nano
Ratan Tata always wanted to ensure that every common citizen of India would be able to afford a car if it only cost INR 100,000 or $1,767 in today’s money. For this ambition to be attained, the major challenge was to make a car that is affordable yet effective and more importantly locally sourced and locally manufactured.
In 2008, Tata presented a microcar called Tata Nano. A rear-wheel drive setup with 27.8 kW and 51 Nm. While the numbers aren’t impressive, the size of the car was enough for it to commute 4 people within urban limits.
The Tata Nano was not able to quite achieve the price parity as envisioned by Ratan Tata and essentially lived out its final days in 2018, unable to justify the investment required to keep it compliant with new safety regulations that kept making the car even more expensive. However, the decade-long journey would inspire a lot of families in India to achieve their lifelong dream of owning a car. The Nano project may have shut down, but that ethos remains as Tata Motors continues to develop affordable EVs today.
The Jaguar and Land Rover acquisition
Tata Motors had just launched Tata Nano and their annual revenue was over $8.8 Billion (USD). While Tata had successfully recovered from its initial losses, Ford’s golden era was coming to an end. In 2006, Ford had their worst year ever losing $12.7 billion (USD). It was in June 2007 when Ford floated a global offer for the sale of JLR.
America’s economic crisis is worsening, Ford is on the verge of bankruptcy and then Tata steps into the conversation and takes Jaguar & Land Rover (JLR) for a meagre $2.3 billion (USD). This is remarkable because Ford had made a statement about how Tata doesn’t know how to make cars and should refrain from doing so. Funnily enough, the cost at which Tata acquired JLR is 60% less than what Ford paid to get JLR in the first place ($5.2 billion). Today, this luxury automotive brand is still here and thriving with its wide range of SUVs, including an all-electric Range Rover due to debut by 2025.
End of a legacy
Ratan Tata was the chairman emeritus of the Tata group and led it through multiple acquisitions which range from Corus Steel, Daewoo Motors, BigBasket and more products across 10+ verticals. While Ratan Tata stepped down from the helm in 2012, he returned shortly as the interim CEO in 2016. Apart from that Mr. Tata remained extremely active in the world of philanthropy donating to charities and providing grants to meritorious students. Ratan Tata has left an indelible mark on the world, whether it is about living a simplistic and humble life, to navigating troubled and testing times and of course, boosting our love of cars.
