A company that builds electric supercars in Croatia was acquired by the famous French car manufacturer “Bugatti”, which in turn was owned by the Germans from Porsche.
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Thus, the “Rimac” company, which started in a garage about 10 years ago, has become part of one of the most influential car families in the world, the Volkswagen group.
Behind this business of tens, maybe even hundreds of millions – the financial details are not known – is a young Croatian inventor and entrepreneur, with a fascinating story, nicknamed “Elon Musk” from the Balkans.
Mate Rimac has been told 15 years ago that it is impossible to build cars in Croatia, let alone electric supercars. But his company is preparing to sell, in just a few months, the amazing Rimac Nevera.
The electrified car, named after a storm hitting the Adriatic coast, costs 2 million euros and can reach a dizzying speed … 412 kilometers per hour. The first hundred can be reached after 2 seconds. The engines that power these vehicles are developed and manufactured in Croatia.
Mate Rimac, owner of Rimac Cars: “We are announcing the creation of a new company, the best company in the world that manufactures super cars, called Bugatti-Rimac. It is a perfect fusion between the fast-paced electrification innovations from Rimac Automobili and the design and craftsmanship tradition from the 110-year-old Bugatti. I will keep the initial stake in Rimac Group, 37%, Porsche owns 24%, Hyundai Motor Group 12% and other investors another 27%”.
Lutz Meschke, CFO of Porsche Group: “This ensured the future of this proud and traditionally rich brand. As part of this joint venture with Rimac, Bugatti will continue to be able to fully demonstrate its outstanding skills and charisma.”.
Mate Rimac is only 33 years old, but the story of the nicknamed “Elon Musk from the Balkans” is extraordinary.
During the high school years he won invention competitions in the field of electronics. And 15 years ago he turned an old BMW, with which he had run races, into one of the fastest electric cars in the world.
Rimac: „I converted this old BMW into an electric car in my garage…”
… with an electric motor and parts he could find then, including from a forklift. Nicknamed “Green Monster”, he won many competitions against classic cars.
Beyond the idea of building and selling electric supercars, Rimac realized that it needs to build a viable business model. He looked for investors and managed to convince the Porsche Germans – who discovered in Croatia a company that built super-sport electric cars a few years before them and had experience and appreciated technologies. In May 2019, Hyundai and Kia also invested almost 100 million euros.
The Rimac factory, located not far from Zagreb, would employ 2,500 employees in about 2 years.
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