Jaguar Land Rover is to become the first British carmaker to open a manufacturing facility in Brazil – with a £240 million factory in the Rio de Janeiro area.
The Midlands biggest manufacturer has announced a landmark agreement between the company and Brazilian authorities to build a plant in Itatiaia in the State of Rio de Janeiro.
The factory will have an annual production capacity of 24,000 vehicles and will initially employ 400 people, with the workforce set to virtually double by the end of the decade.
The first vehicles will come off the assembly line in 2016.An agreement paving the way for construction of the plant has been signed by Phil Hodgkinson, Global Business Expansion Director of Jaguar Land Rover, and Sergio Cabral, State Governor of Rio de Janeiro.
JLR’s planned expansion into Brazil is the next major step in the company’s strategy to increase its global manufacturing footprint and create additional capacity.
Dr Ralf Speth, Chief Executive of Jaguar Land Rover, said: “Brazil and the surrounding regions are very important. Customers there have an increasing appetite for highly capable premium products.
“This new programme will enable us to bring exciting new vehicles to them, with outstanding British design and engineering, creating a world-class Jaguar Land Rover facility incorporating leading premium manufacturing technologies.
“We have established excellent working relationships with the State of Rio de Janeiro, the City of Itatiaia & the Rio de Janeiro State Industrial Development Company and we look forward to attracting new customers to our business in this important market.”
Construction of the facility will commence in mid-2014.
