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A few days ago, Jaguar Land Rover CEO said in an interview with foreign media that the future recovery plan of Jaguar Land Rover will face challenges from all sides.

The problems currently facing Jaguar Land Rover-weak performance in China, concerns about Brexit and falling diesel prices-are seriously affecting its parent company in India. Tata's shares fell 30% in February after Jaguar Land Rover reported a loss in the first quarter. Tata had to reduce the value of its UK subsidiary by nearly $4 billion. There is speculation that Tata is studying strategic options, including the sale of the British brand, and PSA chief executive Carlo Stavares has expressed interest. Reporter: according to media reports, Tata, the parent company of Jaguar Land Rover, is studying strategic options, including potential sales of the company. Has this problem been discussed? Ralph: you really should ask the Tata supervisory board about this. But I can tell you: there is no doubt that Tatas is fully supporting Jaguar Land Rover. The Tata Group and Ratan Tata are personally linked to Jaguar Land Rover. Reporter: after years of efforts, JLR is facing great resistance. Apart from Brexit, what is the biggest challenge you face this year? Ralph: the whole auto industry is on the brink of great change. Whether they are regulatory, economic, geopolitical or technological, they must be funded. We have been studying this problem. Our current improvement plan focuses on profitability and cash and has been under way since 2018. We are reducing investment and spending, eliminating complexity and tightening processes in many areas. We can do business anywhere in order to improve efficiency in the short term. We are also implementing a separate plan to improve efficiency systematically and strategically. Interviewer: you will also lay off staff, right? Ralph: that's the hardest part. This is another reason why we get up early. In 2018-19, 2500 temporary workers were separated from the company, and at the beginning of the year, we launched a voluntary settlement scheme which has been accepted by 2500 employees. These measures were completed at the end of March so that we can start the new financial year on 1 April and establish a more streamlined organization. We know exactly what we are doing.

Interviewer: what problems do you face? First of all, we are investing heavily in autopilot, networking and shared mobility. Second, we are updating and expanding our product portfolio. Third, we are optimizing all internal combustion engines so that we can continue to provide quality products to our customers. Given the current challenges, this is not easy.

Interviewer: with the decline in demand for diesel and Vmur8 gasoline engines, do you question your powertrain strategy? Ralph: no, absolutely not. I believe we will continue to need this combination. According to industry forecasters, the global share of electric vehicles is expected to reach 20 to 30 per cent by 2025. When you turn things around, it means that 70% to 80% of the world's cars will have traditional engines. Let me add that today's diesel engines are absolutely carbon dioxide efficient and clean.

Reporter: why are electric cars still not important to consumers? On the one hand, the product is still too expensive. On the other hand, the infrastructure is still so inconvenient and unreliable that electric cars tend to be people with wallets.

Interviewer: the Jaguar I-Pace, which costs at least 78000 euros, has always been praised, but it has almost no visibility in Germany. Does this damage the company's image? Ralph: I-Pace has won many awards, including the European car of the year Award in 2019. In fact, supply is tight in Germany and around the world.

Interviewer: why? Ralph: when it comes to electric cars, the question is not how many cars I can build, but how many batteries I can buy. The demand for batteries is so great that the ability to provide batteries is limited in the next few years. And, unlike some other products, I expect battery prices to continue to rise-at least for the next two to three years.

Reporter: the new guard will expire in 2020. However, it has been reported that the preparations for the production release have encountered difficulties. Oh yeah? Ralph: we realize that the continuation of the guard is not easy. It's hard to push a cart every time. But the successor to the icon faces extremely high standards.

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