Ailing national carmaker Proton dismissed an offer by former chief executive Mahaleel Ariff to buy its British sports car outfit Lotus for one pound (RM6.5).

"We are not interested to sell it for whatever value," Proton managing director Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohd Tahir said.

Mahaleel, a protege of former premier Mahathir Mohamad who set up Proton as part of Malaysia's drive into heavy industry in the 1980s, has repeatedly attacked the sale of Proton's stake in motorcycle maker Agusta for one euro (RM4.5).

Mahaleel, along with Mahathir who remains adviser to Proton, in an apparent swipe last week at Proton, offered to buy Proton's Lotus unit for one pound.

Mahaleel was quoted as saying by the Edge financial weekly last week that "Since precedent has been set, we would like to publicly register our interest to acquire for one British pound if and when Lotus is put for sale."

"Should it be more than one pound, we (with Mahathir) would like to register our interest to bid for it," he said.

Sale 'unnecessary'

The loss-making Proton announced in December it had sold its 57.75 percent stake in Agusta to Italy's Gevi SPA, which will assume Agusta's restructured frozen debts of RM474 million and shoulder working capital requirements of RM144 million.

Mahathir and Mahaleel have criticised the sale as unnecessary and ill-conceived.

Proton suffered a net loss of RM154.33 million for the second quarter to September, reversing a profit of RM198.91 million a year earlier.

It attributed the loss to provisions totalling RM160.7 million, mainly for the Agusta unit.