Fears for future of Castle Bromwich as JLR reveals electric dreams
Carmaker to stop vehicle production at factory
ALEADING trade unionist fears Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) could end manufacturing altogether at its Castle Bromwich plant in Birmingham.
A shadow now hangs over the future of JLR’s giant Castle Bromwich assembly plant after the carmaker revealed ambitious plans for an all-electric future.
The new boss of JLR, Thierry Bolloré, this week revealed that Jaguar would become an all-electric brand as part of the company’s ‘Reimagine’ strategy, the first major corporate declaration since Mr Bolloré took over from Ralf Speth as chief executive in September.
He also revealed that a planned new version of Jaguar’s XJ saloon has been axed and that Jaguar production would be centred in Solihull, sparking uncertainty for the Castle Bromwich plant.
But Mr Bolloré did say production of existing models would continue at the north Birmingham factory for the time being and the lines would later be “repurposed”.
Currently, the Jaguar XE and XF saloons and the F-Type sports car are produced at Castle Bromwich, the F-Pace SUV is made in Solihull and the Jaguar E-Pace SUV and all-electric I-Pace are made under contract by Magna Steyr in Austria.
But Gerard Coyne, former West Midlands regional secretary for trade union Unite, said losing manufacturing at Castle Bromwich “would be a tragic loss of an iconic factory that the Government paid for at the outbreak of the Second World War, and has basically been in production on and off ever since. There have been production lines from Spitfires to the present Jaguars.”
He said
Castle
Bromwich staff in 2019 accepted a four-day week as part of what was called the Merlin Gateway Agreement, on the understanding that it would lead to investment in the site including bringing new electric vehicles.
But the new JLR strategy made no mention of this, he said.
He added: “Unite Members at Castle Bromwich voted in 2019 to endorse the Merlin Gateway agreement, which endorsed a four-day working week on the assumption it would leverage in investment to the site.
“There was talk of building electric cars at Castle Bromwich. The fact that that wasn’t declared this week leaves a gaping hole in my view. “It raises questions about the fact that this decision was broadly welcomed by Unite.” Mr Coyne also said there was “a degree of complacency” in the response from the leadership of Unite, which welcomed JLR’s announcement of a new strategy.
He plans to run for the post of Unite General Secretary, if an election is held later this year as expected.
He said: “We have to be very clear about establishing a long term future for Castle Bromwich.”
Local MP Jack Dromey is also to seek reassurances from JLR about Castle Bromwich, but said he was confident it had a bright future.
Mr Dromey (Lab, Erdington), a former union leader whose constituency includes the Castle Bromwich plant, said: “The factory has a very good order book for the next four years. What we will need is assurances going beyond 2024 of a secure workload.
“Taken as a whole, given the immense problems confronting the automotive industry, this announcement is good news.
“The company’s commitment to the Castle Bromwich plant is very strong. The discussions I will be having with Jaguar Land Rover are about the medium to long term plans for production at the plant.”
A vehicle platform (called Modular Longitudinal Architecture or MLA) will be produced at JLR’s Land Rover plant in Solihull – but it had previously been thought this would be produced at Castle Bromwich.
Mr Bolloré said sustainability would be key to both the Jaguar and Land Rover brands, with their electrification on separate vehicle architectures.
Land Rover is due to reveal six new all-electric models over the next five years, the first one arriving in 2024, and Jaguar will undergo a “renaissance” as a pure electric luxury brand with a new portfolio of vehicles.
Though the planned Jaguar
XJ replacement will not form part of the brand’s line-up, the nameplate could be revived in the future.
The Halewood plans in Merseyside will be the destination for the company’s new so-called Electric Modular Architecture, a platform that supports electrified engines.
The UK Government recently decreed that all production of purely petrol and diesel engines must stop after 2030.
By this time, Mr Bolloré said all Jaguar vehicles would be electric and 60 per cent of Land Rovers with the remainder hybrid. JLR is aiming to achieve net zero carbon emissions across its supply chain, products and operations by 2039 and, as part of this, the company will also develop vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cells, with prototypes arriving on UK roads within the next 12 months.
The company plans to invest £2.5 billion each year in electrification technologies.
It will retain its plant and assembly facilities in the UK and around the world, with Solihull set to become the home of the future advanced Jaguar pure electric platform.
JLR is also set for reorganisation,
We have to be very clear about establishing a long term future for Castle Bromwich Gerard Coyne, former West Midlands regional secretary for trade union Unite
with Mr Bolloré promising to deliver “a more agile operation” with management appearing to be in the chief executive’s eyeline but concrete details around this were not announced.
Mr Bolloré also said there would be closer cooperation with parent company Tata Group and the company was striving to achieve positive cash net-of-debt by 2025.
Mr Bolloré said: “Jaguar Land Rover is unique in the global automotive industry.
“Designers of peerless models, an unrivalled understanding of the future luxury needs of its customers, emotionally rich brand equity, a spirit of Britishness and unrivalled access to leading global players in technology and sustainability within the wider Tata Group.
“We are harnessing those ingredients today to reimagine the business, the two brands and the customer experience of tomorrow.
“The Reimagine strategy allows us to enhance and celebrate that uniqueness like never before. Together, we can design an even more sustainable and positive impact on the world around us.”