Porsche has made an investment in Croatian supercar company Rimac Automobili.
Porsche said in a statement on Wednesday that it’s taken a 10% stake in Rimac. Volkswagen-owned Porsche also hopes to sign a development contract with the Croatian company to collaborate with Rimac on some of its “ideas and approaches,” the company’s deputy chairman Lutz Meschke said in a statement.
Rimac was founded by its 30-year-old Mate Rimac, who started the company from his garage. Rimac’s vehicles are all electric super sports cars. At the Geneva Motor Show in March, Rimac unveiled the C Two, its second sports car. The vehicle is a two-seater and capable of producing 2,000 horsepower. It can reach top speeds of 256 miles per hour. According to the company, the vehicle can be driven up to 403 miles on a single charge and can get 80% of its battery charge back in just 30 minutes of charging.
Rimac also produces electric vehicle powertrain systems and battery systems. It employs 400 people.
While Porsche didn’t dig too deeply into exactly why it’s invested in Rimac, the company noted that, like most other carmakers, it’s working on “electrification efforts.” In its statement, Porsche suggested that the partnership would help it build out its electric vehicle systems in some form. Exactly how, though, is unknown.
In addition to electric cars and car systems, Rimac owns a subsidiary called Greyp Bikes. That company develops and produces e-bikes.