Jaguar Land Rover reveals plans to go all-electric by 2020
Every new Jaguar Land Rover model will be electric from 2020, the firm announced today.
The company, which employs 1,400 workers at its engine factory on the i54 site near Wolverhampton, also revealed an electrified new version of its iconic E-Type sports car.
Chief executive Ralf Speth said: “Every new Jaguar Land Rover model line will be electrified from 2020, giving our customers even more choice.
“We will introduce a portfolio of electrified products across our model range, embracing fully electric, plug-in hybrid and mild hybrid vehicles.
“Our first fully electric performance SUV, the Jaguar I-Pace, goes on sale next year.”
The company follows Volvo in going all-electric, with the Swedish firm making the change from 2019.
The Government expects half of all new cars sold in 2027 to be battery-powered, and the number of public charging points is increasing.
Performance has increased dramatically in recent years, with acceleration being one of the msot appealing aspects to drivers.
Because batteries offer all their power from a standing start, acceleration in cars such as the popular Tesla range is among the best in the market – especially as electric vehicles are far lighter than traditional rivals.
The JLR commitment underlines a dramatic transformation of the West Midlands-based luxury car maker over the next three years in moves that could bring thousands of new jobs to the region.
It also puts JLR on the fast track to meeting the Government’s aim of ending the sale of new diesel and petrol cars and vans from 2040.
It has already revealed a target of doubling its workforce to 90,000 and boosting car production to one million a year by 2020.
At a meeting of leading business and political figures at Warwick 10 months ago proposals were laid out to start making electric cars in the West Midlands by 2019.
The company is already gearing up to sell its first all-electric car, the Jaguar I-Pace, next year. It is being built in Austria because the facilities to manufacture an electric car in the UK do not exist year.
JLR clearly aims to change that. And it has also revealed its long term picture of the future with its Future-Type virtual concept of autonomous, connected and shared transport for 2040 and beyond.
The unveiling was planned at today’s launch of the Jaguar Land Rover Tech Fest ,which runs until Sunday at the University of the Arts London.
The JLR engine plant on i54 is undergoing a major development that is doubling its size to 2 million square feet, making the site a £1 billion factory that will be at the heart of the car company’s future.
With 1,400 already working on the site, the expansion is set to create hundreds more jobs for local people.
Today’s event also sees JLR show off its new electric Jaguar E-type Zero. The E-type now has electric power for the first time. Based on the 1968 Series 1.5 Roadster it features a cutting-edge electric powertrain for 0-60mph in just 5.5 seconds.
The car was engineered by specialists at Jaguar Classic in Coventry.
