JLR Working With Supply Partners To Prioritise Payments: Tata Motors CFO

Tata Motors owned Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has reassured partners and investors following a significant cyber-attack that has crippled production at the British luxury carmaker.

JLR’s cyberattack halts production, hits Tata Motors shares. (Photo Source: JLR)

Tata Motors owned Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has reassured partners and investors following a significant cyber-attack that has crippled production at the British luxury carmaker. In a letter to the UK Business and Trade Committee, Tata Motors Group CFO P.B. Balaji on Tuesday confirmed JLR is "fully empowered" to manage the crisis and that the wider Tata Group is providing close support.

Balaji addressed the ongoing fallout from the cyber-attack, cautioning that it is "too premature to provide a definitive impact assessment" as the situation remains fluid. However, he stated that as Tata Group of companies, they are in close touch with JLR to offer advice and support.

Balaji's letter stressed on JLR's strong financial position stating that they have cleared over USD 5 billion of debt in the last three years. This, he stated, provides JLR with the ability to secure additional short-term liquidity if needed.

"As a result of JLR’s work over the last three years in paying off over £5 billion of debt, JLR is in a good position to secure additional short-term liquidity. Both TML and JLR are closely monitoring JLR’s working capital position and are committed to taking the necessary steps to meet its ongoing commitments to our retail and supply partners until such time as production and sales operations return to normal," the letter stated.

In parallel, JLR is working with their supply partners to prioritise payments to those with the "greatest need." The company has assured that outstanding payments will be settled in the coming weeks as its capacity for processing payments ramps up.

Also Read: JLR Cyberattack Takes Toll On Tata Motors With Potential 2-Billion-Pound Loss, Supplier Strain

About JLR Cyberattack

The cyber-attack, which began in early September, has forced JLR to repeatedly extend its production halt, impacting its three main UK factories and a vast network of suppliers.

Tata Motors announced a further extension of its ongoing production shutdown until Oct. 1, as the company continues to deal with the fallout of a cyber hack since the start of this month.

The British luxury carmaker’s factories in Merseyside, north-west England, and Solihull in the West Midlands as well as facilities around the world, including India, Slovakia and China, remain at a standstill after an IT network shutdown.

The company said its focus is on supporting its customers, suppliers and colleagues, as well as the car retailers, who remain open. The production shutdown, nearing a month, is expected to cost JLR tens of millions of pounds a day in lost revenue and have raised major concerns for the companies and jobs in the supply chain.

A group calling itself Scattered Lapsus$ Hunters is believed to have claimed responsibility for the hack. It was also behind a number of high-profile attacks on UK retailers this year, including Marks & Spencer and Co-op.

Also Read: JLR Cyberattack: Production At Halt Amid Multiple Shutdown Extensions — What We Know So Far

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