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Jaguar Land Rover set to build electric cars in UK

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London: Car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover has decided to produce a range of electric vehicles at its central England factory, it announced on Friday, securing thousands of jobs in a major boost to post-Brexit Britain.


“Jaguar Land Rover today revealed plans to manufacture a range of new electrified vehicles at its manufacturing plant in Castle Bromwich, UK,” the Indian-owned group said in a statement.


The facility in Birmingham, Britain’s second biggest city, will produce the electric vehicles in an investment worth £1.0 billion ($1.3 billion) according to the Financial Times. The first car to roll off the production line at Castle Bromwich, which currently employs 2,500 workers, will be the next-generation all-electric Jaguar XJ luxury saloon model.


The news is a welcome fillip for the nation’s largely foreign-owned car sector, which has long warned over the impact of Britain’s looming departure from the European Union at the end of October.


Batteries will be made in neighbouring Hams Hall, Warwickshire, while electric motors will be manufactured at JLR’s engine plant close to the nearby city of Wolverhampton.


“Today’s announcement, which safeguards several thousand jobs in the UK, is the next stage in execution of Jaguar Land Rover’s electrification strategy,” JLR added. The group aims to offer electrified options for all new Jaguar and Land Rover models by 2020.


“The future of mobility is electric and as a visionary British company, we are committed to making our next generation of zero-emission vehicles in the UK,” noted JLR Chief Executive Ralf Speth. The investment, praised as “trailblazing” by Britain’s biggest trade union Unite, follows an agreement for employees to work a four-day week as part of restructuring plans. — AFP


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