Petronas ditches Lotus on a slippery surface
Dec 26, 2009 General
Kuala Lumpur, Dec 26 — The decision by state oil and gas company Petronas to sponsor the Mercedes Formula One team next season is a blow to the Malaysia-backed Lotus F1 racing team but may have political consequences for Petronas’s independent chief executive.
Last month, Riad Asmat, the chief executive officer of Lotus F1 told the press that he had submitted a comprehensive sponsorship proposal to the oil firm but admitted that the well-heeled Petronas was being wooed by other international suitors.
It costs approximately RM1 billion a year to sponsor an F1 team.
Riad’s statement led observers to conclude that Petronas would, indeed, be Lotus’s main sponsor as the creation of the Malaysia-backed team had been announced by Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak who’d said that it would be a government-backed venture. Lotus, which used to race on the circuit until 1994, is a subsidiary of Malaysian automotive firm Proton Holdings.
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Tags: Air Asia, Asmat, Budget Carrier, Chief Executive Officer, datuk seri najib, dr mahathir mohamad, F1 Racing, F1 Team, Former Prime Minister, Great Relationship, Lotus F1, najib razak, Oil And Gas Company, Oil Firm, Petronas, Political Consequences, S Board, Slippery Surface, Sponsorship Proposal, Tony Fernandes
