Jaguar Land Rover battery plant coming up in Somerset, west England
In a significant development for the automotive industry, Tata Group, the owner of Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), is reportedly set to announce the construction of a battery plant in Somerset, west England.
The plant will supply batteries for the new range of electric Jaguar and Land Rover models. The site in the UK has been chosen over a location in Spain. The Tata Group is expected to confirm the decision soon.
Tata’s decision to opt for the UK over Spain is seen as a boost for JLR’s plants in its traditional home market. The battery factory will have a projected capacity of 40 gigawatt hours, which would be sufficient to supply approximately half a million vehicles per year, depending on the battery sizes.
The UK has been facing challenges in competing with the green technology incentives offered by the United States and the European Union. Earlier this year, Britishvolt Ltd., the company involved in the proposed battery factory in the north-east of England, went into administration, increasing concerns about the country’s ability to compete in the electric vehicle sector.
European automakers have expressed concerns over potential tariffs on electric vehicles traded between the UK and the EU, warning that manufacturing cars in Britain might become too costly after the implementation of Brexit regulations.
Agratas, Tata’s battery-cell operation, which is establishing factories in India and Europe, recently posted job openings for battery factory positions in the UK, further suggesting the company’s commitment to investing in the country.
Until now we have only seen an all-electric vehicle from Jaguar, which is the I-Pace. There is no electric Land Rover vehicle on sale yet, they only have PHEVs in their current portfolio. However, Land Rover’s first all-electric model will be the Range Rover. Bookings for the Ranger Rover EV will start later this year while the deliveries are expected to commence by 2024.
We will be witnessing up to 6 new electric vehicles by Jaguar Land Rover in the next 2-3 years. Jaguar Land Rover plans to become a carbon net-zero company by 2039. The company is investing £15 billion over the next 5 years to boost their electrification programme.