THIERRY BOLLORÉ, JLR CEO, TO QUIT ON DECEMBER 31

NEW DELHI: Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) chief executive Thierry Bolloré said on Wednesday that he would leave the company on December 31 because of personal reasons after two years at the helm of the iconic British luxury carmaker.

Bolloré, a former chief executive of French carmaker Renault, took over the top job at JLR from Ralf Speth in September 2020.

He will also resign as non-executive, non-independent director of parent Tata Motors Ltd with effect from December 31.

Tata Motors’ ADRs were down 2.76% to $26.28 as of 10pm IST.

Adrian Mardell, the chief financial officer at JLR, will serve as the interim CEO after Bolloré’s departure, Tata Motors said in a filing to the stock exchanges. Mardell has been with JLR for 32 years and has served as a member of the executive board for three years.

In February 2021, Bolloré set into motion the global Reimagine strategy for Jaguar Land Rover, announcing a plan to transform the iconic sports carmaker as an all-electric brand by 2025 and committing to a net-zero-carbon target by 2039.

As part of the Reimagine vision, JLR also aims to launch six pure electric luxury car variants to be the “world leader of SUVs”, with all the nameplates under the company’s brands to be available in pure electric form by the end of the decade.

“The company’s transformation and acceleration towards a sustainable, profitable future as a modern luxury business is underway at a great pace,” Bolloré said in a statement.

JLR’s parent, Tata Motors, narrowed its consolidated second-quarter loss to ₹945 crore from ₹4,441.57 crore a year earlier. The quarter ended September 30 was the seventh consecutive quarter in which the carmaker failed to turn in a profit. Loss in the quarter ended June 30 was ₹5,006 crore.

Bolloré, an automotive industry veteran, has also held executive positions at automotive parts supplier Faurecia.