Jaguar Land Rover said to favor Europe rather than US for new plant

Sat, Feb 21 2015

With its plants running at full tilt, Jaguar Land Rover is in desperate need of additional manufacturing capacity. That's led to reports that the Indian-owned British company was looking to join European, Japanese and Korean automakers in America's southern states, all while it opened new plants in the UK and China. The company even announced it would be building the Land Rover Discovery Sport in Brazil.

Now, though, reports are suggesting that JLR is looking at Europe for a new facility, rather than the US, with Automotive News claiming the company's execs are eyeing the lower costs afforded by Austria and Turkey. The report cites the Birmingham Post (UK), the broadsheet that's closest to the company's headquarters.

According to the original report, labor costs and wage disputes with unions are ruling out another factory in the UK, while those same disputes with labor outfits may also be souring the automaker on a US facility.

"At this stage Europe seems more likely than America. The union pay dispute had a big effect," an unnamed source told the Post. "There is a feeling of alienation that has been left over from the way the pay talks were handled."

JLR, meanwhile, offered a solid no comment to the Post, with a spokesperson saying, "No decision has been taken on future manufacturing locations. We will continue to evaluate opportunities to increase our manufacturing footprint in the future."

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By Brandon Turkus