Lamborghini expected to develop Megatech cars<\/p>\n
SURABAYA, East Java (JP): Millionaire Setiawan Djody said here
\nyesterday his reason for acquiring the well-known Italian
\nsuper car manufacturer, Automobili Lamborghini S.p.a., is to
\ntransfer automotive technology to Indonesia.<\/p>\n
\"I'm not only a profit-oriented businessman but also a people-
\noriented entrepreneur,\" Djody told reporters during a press
\nconference.<\/p>\n
Djody, who is well known for his diverse interests, including
\nin music, was showing off two of his Diablo super cars. The
\nDiablo is Lamborghini's flagship model with a maximum speed of
\n325 kilometers per hour.<\/p>\n
Business analysts earlier labeled the purchase of the Italian
\ncar maker early this year from the U.S.-based Chrysler
\nCorporation \"mysterious\" on the grounds that both sides refused
\nto talk about the amount involved.<\/p>\n
The Hong Kong-based Asia Inc. monthly magazine reported in
\nJuly that there were a number of hidden reasons behind what it
\ncalled the US$50 million deal. Figures named by other sources
\nvalued the deal at from $40 million to $100 million.<\/p>\n
The 45-year-old Djody declined to comment about the amount
\nyesterday, saying that he will only reveal the number if Megatech
\nLtd., the major shareholder of Lamborghini, offers its shares to
\nthe public.<\/p>\n
He said that he wants to exploit the know-how of Lamborghini
\nand to develop another automobile firm in Indonesia under the
\nbrand name of Megatech.<\/p>\n
He added that the Italian car manufacturer is currently 20
\npercent owned by the Kuala Lumpur-based Mycom Bhd. and 80 percent
\nby the Bermuda-based Megatech Ltd., which is controlled 50\/50 by
\nHutomo Mandala Putra, the youngest son of President Soeharto, and
\nhimself.<\/p>\n
Engines<\/p>\n
The Italian company, founded by farm-machinery industrialist
\nFerrucio Lamborghini in 1963, is based in Sant' Agata, a small
\ntown near Bologna, Italy.<\/p>\n
Lamborghini, which is famous because of its exclusive super-
\ncar production, was sold for $25 million to Chrysler in 1987
\nfollowing a long recession in Europe.<\/p>\n
Djody hinted in yesterday's press conference that the deal was
\nworth more than $125 million on the grounds that Chrysler had
\ninvested more than $100 million in research for the development
\nof two new types of Lamborghini.<\/p>\n
He told reporters that while the Sant' Agata-based Lamborghini
\ncontinues to produce exclusive super cars, the Indonesia-based
\nMegatech will developed middle-class cars, adding that Megatech
\nis now making feasibility studies on building its own factory in
\nthe country.<\/p>\n
\"The first priority is Surabaya. But if we cannot get a plot,
\nwe will construct the plant in Bekasi, West Java,\" he said,
\nadding that Megatech will invest between $300 million and $400
\nmillion in the automotive industry.<\/p>\n
\"The products will be purely Indonesian products because
\nLamborghini belongs to Indonesian people,\" he said, while showing
\nvisiting journalists the newly designed World Modular Engine
\n(WME) and the Tigre Modular Car.<\/p>\n
Lamborghini's engineers developed the prototype engines and
\nput the name \"Megatech,\" instead of Lamborghini, on top of them.<\/p>\n
Megatech aims to use the engines, designed with between 0.9-
\nliter and 2-liter displacements, for small sedans or trucks for
\nthe growing middle classes in Indonesia, China and India.<\/p>\n
The flamboyant Djody, who once recorded a rock music album,
\nKantata Takwa, with a number of well-known musicians, including
\nIwan Fals, said that he believes the buying power of middle class
\npeople in those countries is strong enough to purchase the
\nproducts of Megatech.<\/p>\n
His wife, Etty, 44, and eldest daughter, Natali, 24, who has
\njust graduated from college and started to help the family's
\nbusiness, also attended yesterday's exhibition.<\/p>\n
Djody is the chairman of the Jakarta-based Setdco business
\ngroup, whose interests range from the shipping, mining, property
\nand automobile industries to the music sector. (09)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/lamborghini-expected-to-develop-megatech-cars-1447893297",
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