Speed bump: An engineer works on a Land Rover vehicle at the company’s test centre in Whitley. Britain’s auto industry produced 10% fewer vehicles in 2022 than 2021. — Reuters
London: Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) will produce an electric version of its Defender off-road vehicle in Slovakia as the manufacturer commits to building the British car outside its home country.
Details of JLR’s electric plans have not yet been fleshed out, but Nitra, Slovakia, will remain “the home of the Defender”, a spokesperson confirmed. The automaker’s Range Rover models are built in Britain, where its electric versions will also be made.
JLR has already outlined plans to produce nine fully electric models by the end of the decade as it implements its new strategy ahead of Britain’s ban on petrol and diesel cars.
Even though Nitra has produced the combustion-engine Defender and Discovery since the plant opened in 2018, it will be a blow to government ministers hoping that the country’s largest car company would build more electric vehicles (EVs) in Britain.
The British auto industry has suffered years of decline, producing 775,000 cars in 2022, 10% fewer than the year before, figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers show.
The Defender’s customers have included the late Queen Elizabeth II and pop stars such as Paul McCartney.
A resurgence in popularity has made it JLR’s best-selling model for the last two years, generating 10 times the revenue the classic Defender did in 2015, the company said.
The original model began life in 1948 and was named the Defender in 1990. The last classic Defender rolled off the production line in January 2016.
Barbara Bergmeier, JLR’s executive director of industrial operations, called for a delay to new “rules of origin” tariffs that are due to come into force from next year and would affect cars built at Nitra and sold in Britain.
Under the new rules, EVs traded between Britain and the EU will attract a 10% tariff if less than 45% of their value comes from the region, as stipulated under post-Brexit agreements.
“We would welcome a pragmatic move that would give us the chance to prepare, mainly around the battery,” she said in an interview at the Nitra site Wednesday. “So we would welcome if it moves to a later timeframe.”
The arrival of cheaper Chinese EVs in Europe has triggered concerns about whether European manufacturers can compete on price.
The European Commission is investigating whether to introduce tariffs to protect against the influx of EVs that have benefited from Chinese subsidies.
As an upmarket manufacturer, JLR is more immune to the threat from the Chinese players such as BYD, according to Thomas Mueller, executive director of product engineering.
The Chinese price war won’t last, Mueller said in an interview Monday in Whitley, West Midlands, at the opening of JLR’s new electrification centre. The facility will focus on developing electric drive units, rather than building the vehicles.
“I think we’re going to see a couple of changes in the next 12 to 24 months,” Mueller said. “You can see the price war that some of the media call it, where we are right now, it’s not a sustainable one for anyone. We’re very happy not to be in that space.” — Bloomberg
