Tata Motors announced today plans to close one of two Central England Januar Land Rover facilities within the next five years. The Indian-based Tata said they will likely close either the Jaguar plant in Castle Bromwich, where 2,000 people work, or the Land Rover plant in Solihull, which houses 5,000 jobs.
The official announcement, and which facility is cut, will be announced by July 2010. The two sites are separated by about eight miles.
It was not all bad news for the two English brands. The company owns a factory in Halewood, Northwest England, which will begin expansion by 2011. That site was chosen to be the home of a diminutive SUV supposedly based on the Land Rover LRX concept, which was confirmed for production today.
2009 has been a particularly bad year for the firm. 2,500 jobs have already been cut at Jaguar Land Rover, while production has been decreased by over 100,000 units in 2009 alone.
The decision to close one of the Central England sites was to stem red ink. Jaguar Land Rover lost about $100 million (pre-tax) in the last quarter. Vehicle sales for the last quarter were down roughly 52% versus the previous year. Because of the decreased demand, the three factories are running at a combined total of less than 60% capacity.
In 2008, Tata paid $2.3 billion to Ford for Land Rover and Jaguar.
Tata to Close Jaguar or Land Rover Factory in UK by 2014
Tata buys Jaguar Land Rover
By Zack Newmark
September 24, 2009 10:40 PM
Filed Under: European, Industry, Jaguar, Land Rover, Production, Tata
Comments
abramo
September 24, 2009 10:58 PM
No surprise here. Their new Jaguar models (overpriced Lexus's) are nice cars, but they are not veritable Jaguars. Real Jaguar buyers (not auto press aficionados) have voted with their wallets. Sad.
Bristol411S3
September 24, 2009 11:48 PM
That's misinformed. All sectors are down and it doesn't help Jaguar they only operates at the top end of the market. In spite of that, the XF is currently accounting for about 30% of esecutive car sales in the UK. That is one hell of a slice, especially when you compare it to what the S-Type achieved before it.
JLR isn't doing so bad in current times. And it isn't yet supplying the XJ, nor is the LRX with the market. Both will bring big boosts to the companies fortunes.
I miss the old XJ, but times had to change, because you and I were in the minority it would seem.
AG4
September 25, 2009 1:01 AM
" Real Jaguar buyers (not auto press aficionados) have voted with their wallets. Sad." -abramo
I thought the new modern looking XF was a sales success for Jaguar. What they need now is a decent BMW 3-series competitor.
Edited by user on September 25, 2009 at 1:02 AM
alessandro
September 25, 2009 10:40 AM
Welcome to Little India in West! The care about human resources is just an European culture-problem you know. Making huge, over-premium-priced 17 feet long gas-guzzlers in 21-st century is a problematic thing in general which requires new product development ideologies to change that as almost all are recognized but as we see Tata have resourceful personnel to solve that problem beyond it. What a shame, if we do not see the direct threat to the human well-being and social stability so.
abramo
September 25, 2009 11:20 PM
So, let us all drive all-identical little nasty mass produced Toyotas, Hyundais, Nissans, Mitsubishis and what have you's, bland and lacking any character and enjoy the ride (blah). Character is a european art, and can be eco-friendly too -- gas guzzling is mostly an American trait and a completely different story. However, there is no doubt that Jaguar have messed it up in more way than one - design, technology, environmental sensibility, economics - and thus has arrived the time of reckoning.
alessandro
September 28, 2009 8:00 PM
No. I was trying to say that let us drive modern and cultivated European cars.
thamzn
September 25, 2009 11:54 AM
The reason is simple; they will open a new manufacturing facility in India which will make better financial sense. That was the plan all along, they just didn't announce it to the world.
Bristol411S3
September 25, 2009 2:17 PM
Unlikely. Since MG became "Chinese" and relaunched the MG TF in the UK, even with finally assembly at Longbridge they have sold only a few tens. Hardly anyone bought Malaysian built TVRs. Proton realised that moving Lotus production to Malaysia would kill the brand. No doubt Tata will be watching to see just how far you can push the "Britishness" of a product by producing it in what is, with respect, a third world country for the main part.
If India grows like China is doing then there could be some sense in a local facility to serve the growing rich, but you'd never get Europeans or Americans buying Indian built Jags. I think everyone knows that. So while there is a demand in the West, they'll be making them somewhere in the UK.
Edited by user on September 25, 2009 at 2:18 PM
SkadV8
September 25, 2009 2:58 PM
God damn it.I have just planed to buy XF 3.0 diesel. Who will maintain my car.I will have to go to India to have my car serviced.
YuZi
September 26, 2009 2:00 AM
Great news! Where is a new automotive engineering graduate in the UK supposed to go? Sheesh. Definitely not going to India :/
abramo
September 26, 2009 6:11 PM
"Definitely not going to India :/ "
It is possibly this attitude that is partially responsible for crippling the British economy. The great times of the British nation were when Britishers did opt to go to India . . .
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