Ineos Automotive: Billionaire’s beefy SUV startup eyes US growth

An auto startup founded by a knighted billionaire, a British chemistry magnate and a minority owner of one of the world’s biggest soccer clubs is hoping to reignite the rugged SUV market.

The company, Ineos Automotive, has produced more than 35,000 off-road SUVs and pickups since its start in 2022 and has ambitious growth plans that include the possibility of expanding vehicle production in the U.S. and a goal to break even this year, executives told CNBC exclusively.

“We operate for success. We operate for profitability,” Ineos CEO Lynne Calder said in an interview with CNBC. “We’re just being really efficient and I think we can actually break even without increasing sales that much.”

Ineos is on track for a “great start” to the year on Monday, with record first-quarter orders for its flagship petrol- and diesel-powered Grenadier 4×4 vehicles, Mr Calder said.

The company’s plans for this year include increasing its sales in the U.S., its largest market, by about 30% to 35% year over year, while further expanding its recognition and sales globally, after supply chain disruptions, tariffs and other issues affected its business last year.

That’s easier said than done, as the capital-intensive global auto industry becomes increasingly competitive. Most automotive startups, especially all-electric vehicle companies, went bankrupt after burning through billions of dollars of capital.

“We’ve been quietly plodding along, building the company, getting things right, and getting to a point where we’re ready to learn and grow as a new startup, and that’s kind of where we are now,” Mike Whittington, Ineos Automotive’s chief commercial officer, said in a separate interview.

The carmaker, a subsidiary of Ineos Group, a multinational conglomerate and one of the world’s largest chemical manufacturers, currently sells cars in 50 global markets: North America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, China and Australia.

But the biggest focus for now is the United States, which accounts for about 60% of sales, Whittington said.

Calder told CNBC that the American market is critical for the company to reach sales of 200,000 to 250,000 units by the early 2030s at the latest. He said this includes production at its current factory, a former Mercedes-Benz factory in France, and the possibility of adding a factory in the United States.

“Our model has great appeal in the U.S. market, so it should be successful in the U.S. market and that’s what makes the most sense for us,” she said. “So we are fully considering the option of manufacturing in the United States.”

He said this could mean starting limited assembly in the U.S. in the coming years to avoid tariffs, including the 25% “chicken tax” on light trucks imported into the U.S., enacted in 1964 in response to Europe’s poultry tax to help protect domestic manufacturing.

Ineos declined to disclose its current financial situation, but Calder acknowledged that the company has spent about $2 billion since its founding in 2017. This is a relatively low amount considering the company’s factories, production and retail network, especially when compared to recent automotive startups such as EV makers. Rivian Automotive and lucid group.

“I love cars, but I’m not a ‘car gal’ here. I am here as someone who runs a business,” said Calder, who began leading the company after spending most of his career in Ineos’ petrochemical and energy divisions. “And that’s kind of what I’ve been describing right now. We need scale, and that’s what we’re working on.”

Ineos’ flagship vehicle is the $71,000 Grenadier, named after the famous London pub where British billionaire and company founder Sir James Ratcliffe was when he first came up with the idea.

The chemical industry mogul, who has a net worth of more than $18 billion, according to Forbes, saw the need for such a car after the cancellation of the typically rugged Land Rover Defender, and decided to pursue it while at the Grenadier Pub, he said.

“We set out with a vision to create the world’s best practical four-wheel drive vehicle, and we’ve done just that,” said Ratcliffe, a self-proclaimed adventurer and car enthusiast.

Mr Ratcliffe is the chairman and majority owner of chemical giant Ineos Group and a minority owner of English soccer club Manchester United. He had three non-negotiable elements behind the Grenadier: functional design, serious durability, and extreme off-road capability. The design combines elements of Mercedes-Benz’s representative SUV “G-Class” (“G Wagon”) and military Humvee “Hummer”.

The Grenadier is available in SUV, pickup truck, and commercial models with a BMW 3.0-liter inline six-cylinder gasoline engine for the United States. Other components are sourced from suppliers such as Bosch, Brembo and Recaro, with technical development support. Magna.

Prices for the pickup truck model, called the Quartermaster, start at $84,400. The limited edition Grenadier SUV, the Detour, is priced at approximately $157,000.

The company’s next vehicle is expected to be a smaller model called the Fusilier, and was expected to be fully electric until Ineos paused development in 2024 to also consider hybrid options.

Calder said Ineos is looking to partner with other companies on future models, rather than developing them from scratch like Grenadier. He said Fusilier is expected to arrive within the next two to three years, followed by an even faster product pace.

“We’re a bit of a rebellious British brand, offering rebellious cars that give people the chance to live a very fun and adventurous life,” Calder said. “I am very optimistic that 2026 will be the next pivotal milestone year in our company’s growth.”