- 250 new jobs created by Jaguar Land Rover as company announces plans to build the Land Rover Discovery Sport at Halewood.
- New jobs see the Halewood workforce treble in four years.
- More than £200m invested at the plant to support the Discovery Sport introduction.
Halewood, Merseyside, 18th June 2014. 250 new jobs have been created by the UK's largest automotive employer as the Land Rover Discovery Sport is today confirmed as the latest model to be produced at Jaguar Land Rover's Halewood plant.
The additional jobs announced to support Jaguar Land Rover's newest model will see the Halewood workforce reach 4,750 ‑ more than treble the number employed there in 2010.
Commenting on the announcement, Jaguar Land Rover CEO, Dr. Ralf Speth, said: "The Land Rover Discovery Sport is the next in a line of exciting new products to come from Jaguar Land Rover. I am delighted that Halewood ‑ and Liverpool ‑ has been selected for this new investment. It is totally deserved, and strengthens the 'special relationship' that bonds Jaguar Land Rover to this great city."
The Halewood plant, which is already home to the company's fastest selling model of all time ‑ the Range Rover Evoque, has benefited from a £200 million investment to support the introduction of the first member of the all‑new Land Rover Discovery family. This takes the total amount invested in Halewood over the last four years to almost £500 million.
The new Land Rover Discovery Sport, which will go on sale in 2015, will be the most versatile and capable vehicle in the compact SUV segment. It is the first member of an all‑new family of Discovery vehicles, inspired by the Discovery Vision Concept which was spectacularly showcased at the New York International Auto Show.
Richard Else, Jaguar Land Rover Halewood Operations Director, said: "I am delighted to be welcoming the new Land Rover Discovery Sport to Halewood. Its arrival has been a further boost to the region and to our committed and loyal workforce who are all passionate ambassadors for this great company.
"In many ways, Halewood has embodied the transformation of Jaguar Land Rover. We have seen our work force treble and production quadruple in just four years. Today we are operating three shifts, 24‑hours a day to meet global demand and I am confident that the team will rise to the challenge and deliver a flawless launch of this exciting new model."
The arrival of this exciting new vehicle at Halewood has doubled investment in the plant since 2010. In addition to a £45 million state‑of‑the‑art Aida servo press line installed in March of this year, Jaguar Land Rover has installed 260 new automated robots, industry leading laser welding facilitates and a number of state of the art equipment monitoring & reporting systems to support an unrelenting focus on quality.
Halewood became home to Jaguar Land Rover's top selling model, the Range Rover Evoque in 2011. Within two years the plant had produced more than 200,000 vehicles, a record volume for a single vehicle line at any Jaguar Land Rover facility. Today the Range Rover Evoque continues to attract new customers to the Land Rover brand. Sales in May were up 12% year on year with more than 80% of production exported to 170 global markets.
Ends
Notes to editors:
Jaguar Land Rover:
- Jaguar Land Rover has ambitious plans for sustainable growth and profitability.
- The company was named Responsible Business of the Year 2013, by Business in the Community (BITC).
- During 2013 calendar year, Jaguar Land Rover sold 425,006 vehicles, up 19%. Of that, Jaguar sold 76,668 vehicles and Land Rover sold 348,338 vehicles. In the first quarter of 2014, Jaguar Land Rover sold 124,776 vehicles, up 8%.
- Jaguar Land Rover will invest circa £3.5bn in product creation and capital expenditure, in the financial year to March 2015.
- Jaguar Land Rover is one of the UK's largest exporters and generates in the region of 80% of its revenue from exports. The company has a worldwide network of 2,520 dealers, spanning more than 170 countries.
- In the 12 months to 31 March 2014, Jaguar Land Rover generated profit before tax of £2.5bn with revenues of £19.4bn.
For more information, please visit www.newsroom.jaguarlandrover.com or contact:
Ken McConomy, Head of Corporate Relations
M: +44 7714 725 236 E: kmcconom@jaguarlandrover.com
Nicola Rzeznik, Senior Communications Officer
M: + 44 (0) 7736 912266 E: nrzeznik@jaguarlandrover.com
Neil Roscoe, Communications Officer
M: +44 7500 814 114 E: nroscoe@jaguarlandrover.com
