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The McLaren Group is selling its Applied business division to focus on “supercar manufacturing and elite motorsport”.
McLaren’s Applied division is a technology business that has had motorsport-specific projects including producing the standard ECU used in Formula 1 by every team, and supplying the control battery in Formula E since the introduction of the second-generation car in 2018.
It is being sold to investment group Greybull but will be led by the existing management team and expected to continue running from the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking.
The McLaren Group has undertaken significant work for over a year to strengthen its financial situation, including a comprehensive debt refinancing and sale of a significant but minority stake in the Racing division in late 2020.
McLaren Group executive chairman Paul Walsh described it as “the latest in a series of proactive steps to build a more focused and profitable Group”.
The F1 operation, which falls under the Racing division, has been in a strong position in recent years but was at risk of being affected by the Group’s wider issues.
Now Walsh says the automotive and motorsport projects – which will soon be expanded to include Extreme E – will be “underpinned by a more sustainable capital structure”.
As for the Applied company, which will conclude its FE battery supply deal next season, the sale is expected to be completed by the end of the month.
Applied CEO Anthony Murray said: “We are delighted to secure the investment which will underpin our strategic intent to pioneer a better future, leveraging our electrification and telemetry, control and analytics capability.
“We remain focused and committed to our existing customer and market segments of motorsport, automotive and public transport and this additional investment will ensure we can provide long-term stability and additional finance to develop market-leading innovations for our customers.”
