Tata Motors Ltd is in initial talks with two Chinese automobile companies for a tie-up for its passenger vehicles business, three people aware of the development told Mint.
Although the names of the two companies were not ascertained, the collaboration could include joint development of technologies related to electric mobility, sharing of manufacturing capacities, development of engines and platforms and other aspects of the business, the persons said.
The collaboration could help Tata Motors significantly reduce its consolidated debt that stood at Rs 95,465 crore as of 30 September. This includes its UK unit Jaguar Land Rover.
According to one of the three people cited earlier, Tata Motors has been actively looking for collaborations as the company, like other manufacturers, is looking to slash costs to sustain profitability.
Tata Motors appears a lucrative target for Chinese companies looking to establish a base in India as the company has excess capacity, which could be easily utilised to ramp up operations, the report said.
The Mumbai-based vehicle maker is already looking for partnerships for Jaguar Land Rover and has forged one with German competitor BMW for developing next-generation electric powertrains.
Meanwhile, Sequoia Capital is in talks to invest up to $30 million (Rs 213 crore at current exchange rate) in enterprise software platform Whatfix at a post-money valuation of $150 million, two people aware of the matter told Mint.
Existing investors Eight Roads Ventures, Stellaris Venture Partners and Cisco Investments are also likely to participate in the round, they added.
In March, the software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform, owned by Quicko Technosoft Labs Pvt. Ltd, raised $13.2 million in its Series B round from F Prime Capital, Cisco and Eight Roads.
