Jaguar Land Rover opens $800 mn factory in Britain
London (AFP) - British luxury car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover on Thursday opened a $800 million engine manufacturing centre in the Midlands, creating 1,400 jobs.
The business, owned by Indian giant Tata Motors, will now manufacture in-house engines for new Jaguar Land Rover products, starting with the 2.0-litre diesel in the Jaguar XE, ending its current reliance on sub-contractors.
The plant in Wolverhampton, costing the equivalent of £500 million or 603 million euros, which was inaugurated by Queen Elizabeth II, has already taken on 1,400 people and will support more than 4,000 additional jobs at subcontractors, Jaguar Land Rover said in a statement.
"This state of the art facility supports the burgeoning UK manufacturing industry and will further support Jaguar Land Rover's contribution to a rebalanced economy," it added.
The opening will help boost the country's automotive industry, which is currently enjoying a renaissance.
About 2.5 million automobile engines were produced in the UK last year, 60 percent of them for export, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
US manufacturer Ford is currently building a 600-million-euro factory for making low-emission engines in Dagenham, east London.
"The recent success is testament to the expertise of UK engineers, a flexible workforce and the competitive and supportive business environment," said SMMT Chief Executive Mike Hawes.
"It will create more jobs, bolster the supply chain and help attract overseas suppliers back to UK shore," he added.
More than 1.5 million cars were made in Britain last year, the highest since 2007.
The great British brands (Mini, Jaguar, Land Rover, Bentley, Rolls-Royce) are now under foreign ownership but have invested heavily. Japanese manufacturers Nissan, Toyota and Honda also all have a significant presence in the country.
According to the SMMT, Britain could overtake Spain and France to become Europe's second-biggest manufacturer, behind Germany, by 2017, but experts consider that target optimistic.
