Ford said last week that India’s Tata Motors was the front-runner to buy its European brands Jaguar and Land Rover, which the U.S. carmaker is selling to counter mounting debt.

“Ford is committed to focused negotiations at a more detailed level with Tata Motors concerning the potential sale of the combined Jaguar/Land Rover business,” said Lewis Booth, Ford executive vice president with responsibility for Europe.

“There is still considerable work to do and while no final decision has been made, we will proceed with further substantive discussions with Tata Motors over the forthcoming weeks.”
An acquisition by Tata would represent the latest instance of an Indian company buying a high-profile European industrial target as companies on the subcontinent flex their financial muscle to expand abroad.

No figures were given, but reports have said that Ford, which wanted to focus on turning around its money-losing U.S. operations, could get as much as $1.97 billion, from a sale.

For Ratan Tata, the takeover will cap 16 years transforming Tata Group, one of the world’s most diverse and unusual conglomerates. Through 98 companies, Tata creates and sells everything from steel to tea to watches, making the name ubiquitous in India.

Under Tata, it is a name that has started to reverberate around the globe as well.

A string of international deals in recent years has diversified Tata to the point where more than half its revenues this year will come from outside India.

Tata’s increasingly global outlook is piquing the overseas ambitions of other Indian firms as well.

Tata Steel , for example, last year bought Anglo-Dutch steelmaker Corus for 6.2 billion pounds.