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Not long ago, Group Lotus plc has confirmed that, Mr Dany Bahar has been officially terminated from his employment as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Group Lotus with immediate effect from suspend stage. The decision was made by the Board of Group Lotus plc following the results of an investigation into a complaint made against him by the company’s penultimate holding company, DRB-HICOM Berhad.

What’s more, Mr Aslam Farikullah was announced to be the Chief Operating Officer (COO) at Lotus now. According to the source, Mr Aslam has over 26 years work experience in the industry and he is also a British permanent resident.

Dato’ Sri Haji Mohd Khamil Jamil, Group Managing Director of DRB-HICOM Berhad and also Chairman of Lotus said: “I would like to assure you that we remain committed to ensure the ongoing and future business operations of the Lotus Group as we take the Lotus Group to the next level to remain relevant in the global automotive industry. I look forward to bringing mutual benefits to not only DRB-HICOM and PROTON Holdings Berhad but also the Lotus Group and its employees as well as contribute to the growth of the British automotive industry.”

Today, Proton has confirmed that the Chief Executive Officer of Group Lotus plc, Dany Bahar has been temporarily suspended from his role to facilitate an investigation into a complaint about his conduct made by Lotus’ penultimate parent company, DRB-HICOM Berhad.

Based on the Press Release, Dato’ Lukman Ibrahim, Mr Mohd Khalid Yusof and Mr Aslam Farikullah (representatives of Lotus’ parent companies) have been authorised by Group Lotus plc’s board to handle and conduct the day-to-day management and affairs of the Lotus Group during the the absence of Mr Bahar’s. They will be assisted by Mr Rusman Zaihan. They have been authorised to take up these duties during the suspension period.

Furthermore, Proton also confirmed that its holding company DRB-HICOM is not selling Lotus, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Proton, despite the recent media reports on speculation and rumours coming from unreliable sources on the purported intent to sell.

According to Executive Chairman of Proton Dato’ Sri Haji Mohd Khamil Jamil, “We acknowledge that Lotus can provide value to Proton. Lotus is an iconic brand with global presence and positioning, coupled with unsurpassed engineering expertise and a talented workforce.”

He added, “Both Proton and DRB-HICOM will continue to review the existing business plans and financial position of Lotus in taking Lotus forward in the immediate- to medium-term. DRB-HICOM has sent in a team comprising local and international consultants to Lotus from March 2012 to conduct an operations and legal audit on Lotus group of companies.”

Unfortunately, there is no statement in the press release from the Managing Director of Proton, Dato’ Sri Syed Zainal Abidin regarding this incident.
 

The need for this review is especially pertinent in light of the existing financial obligation of Lotus in the form of a £270 million syndicated loan taken at the end of 2010 which we reported it here. The six financial institutions acting as lenders are CIMB Bank, Malayan Banking Berhad, Overseas-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited, Export-Import Bank of Malaysia Berhad, Affin Bank Berhad and EON Bank Berhad (now known as Hong Leong Bank after merging).

The Malaysian Automaker, Proton was taken over last month by DRB-Hicom which naturally triggered uncertainty to Lotus which is currently owned by Proton.

Although it’s not first time we hear that Bahar is looking for a buyer for Lotus. However, there are reports this week out of London indicate that the CEO of Lotus – Danny Bahar is seeking a partner, or even a purchaser or Lotus since the British manufacturer of sports and racing cars in the midst of massive initiatives – Esprit, Elan, Eterne, new Elise and in-house V8. It seems like things are gearing up now.

Last Friday, Lotus Cars Limited signed an agreement for facilities amounting to £270 million extended by a syndicate of six financial institutions in Malaysia. The agreement was signed by Group Lotus Chief Executive Officer Dany Bahar which held at the Proton Centre of Excellence in Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia.

The six financial institutions acting as lenders are CIMB Bank, Malayan Banking Berhad, Overseas-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited, Export-Import Bank of Malaysia Berhad, Affin Bank Berhad and EON Bank Berhad.

The loan syndication forms part of the funding required to execute the five year business plan. With the closing of the syndication exercise, the external portion of the funding is now in place and, together with other financial resources, this step means that Lotus has successfully raised the required funding to realise the future plans.

Group Lotus Chief Executive Officer Dany Bahar said: On behalf of Group Lotus, I would like to express our sincere appreciation to CIMB Group, Malayan Banking Berhad, Overseas Chinese Banking Corporation Limited, Export-Import Bank of Malaysia Berhad, Affin Bank Berhad and EON Bank Berhad for their support and, above all, confidence in our future plans.

With the help of this external financing, we look forward to introducing our exciting new models to the world which will complement our current product range. I am confident that the execution of our business plan will mark the return of the iconic Lotus brand into the elite ranks of the world’s premium sportscar manufacturers and generate greater profitability and long-term financial sustainability for the company and its stakeholders

I would like to thank our shareholders PROTON for the unwavering support and confidence in Lotus. I believe Lotus has a lot to offer to PROTON moving forward. As the future plans bear fruit, I am confident that PROTON will benefit in terms of branding, product development, and sales and marketing.

Lotus City Car previously revealed it’s small concept of city car in Paris Motor Show this year as well as, recently in the Kuala Lumpur International Motor 2010. Lotus, has announced that this concept car will launch in October 2013.

The Lotus City car is an inheritance of the Proton EMAS concept. As for Lotus, the small size smart city car has an all round sportier design. Lotus will build the car along with Proton and another OEM manufacturer. Lotus has also confirmed 3 variant of the Lotus City car – A sport version, Asia model and Euro Model.

The 4-seater Lotus City Car is rear-wheel drive. It is a hybrid vehicle with a 1.2-litre, 3-cylinder engine with range extender. The engine produces 73bhp and a high 240Nm of torque. The Lotus City car can do 0-100km/h in 9 secs and a top-speed of 170km/h. This figures are achievable with the car’s weight less than 1400kg. The Lotus City Hybrid Electric car can run a distance of 60km on electric mode, and a total range with the help of some petrol for 500km. The petrol usage is only to power the electric motor to charge the batteries, and the electric batteries act as the source of power for the engine.

We’ve also manage to take some of the interior of the Lotus City Car during our visit KLIMS 2010. This is probably exclusive online. The futuristic dashboard with multi information display is placed in the middle and there are place nicely for iphone integration. The interior of the Lotus City Car is wrapped with Lotus’s green coloured Alcantara liked material.

Check out our Lotus City Car Gallery with exclusive Interior Shots!

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