Chancellor backs JLR plan to turn Wolverhampton plant all electric
Jeremy Hunt has backed Jaguar Land Rover's investment in Wolverhampton.
The giant car company has announced its i54 plant will be all electric and renamed the Electric Propulsion Manufacturing Centre.
On Thursday, the Chancellor gave his approval to JLR's all electric plans.
He said: "Big news! JLR’s plants in Halewood, Solihull and Wolverhampton are getting an upgrade - part of a £15bn boost.
"A proper vote of confidence in the British economy. We're Europe's leading investment destination, and we’ll be the best location for electric vehicle production too."
The i54 engine plant, which employs 1,100 people, currently produces Ingenium internal combustion engines for its vehicles but will be switching to producing electric drive units and battery packs for Jaguar Land Rover's (JLR) next generation vehicles.
It is part of an investment of £15 billion over five years that will see JLR’s Halewood plant in Merseyside become an all-electric manufacturing facility.
Jaguar Land Rover has lagged behind others when it comes to EVs – with its only current EV being the Jaguar I-Pace, which has been on sale since 2018 with minimal changes.
Jaguar has previously announced it is going electric in 2025 but has provided little further information. However, it has now been confirmed that the ‘first of three reimagined modern luxury Jaguars’ will be a four-door GT car. This will be produced at the firm’s factory in Solihull, which currently makes the Range Rover.
The firm says it will have the most power of any Jaguar ever, meaning more than 600bhp is expected, and that will offer a range of ‘up to 430 miles’. It will be built around a specific EV platform, called JEA, and is expected to start from around £100,000. Jaguar says it will go on sale in ‘selected markets’ in 2024, with first deliveries expected in 2025.
A key part of JLR’s electrified introduction will be the arrival of a new Range Rover EV, which will be available to order from later this year. The firm has also announced an expansion of electric medium-size SUVs, likely including the Range Rover Velar.
