Various rumors indicating that the company might keep both the Castle Bromwhich and the Solihull plants running appeared during the weekend, but this were denied by Tata Motors, the Indian company that owns JLR.
The recently-invested Tata Motors Group CEO Carl-Peter Forster issued a statement that crushes the rumors earlier today.
"Recently there has been media speculation that Jaguar Land Rover is re-examining the decision to consolidate its West Midlands manufacturing facilities from two plants to one," Forster said. "I can confirm that this speculation is based on rumour and that these rumours are untrue and serve only to create confusion."
JLR will announce the name of the factory that will be shut in the following months. The action will not have the negative effects usually associated with such a move, as it is part of the company’s strategy to restructure its UK business, moving from a three plant scheme to a two site one. This means that the closing of the factory will not be associated with any job cuts.
"Since my appointment as Group CEO of Tata Motors, I have reviewed JLR's business strategy and this consolidation, which will improve both efficiency and cost and align manufacturing capability with product plans and future volume growth, remains in JLR's plans," Forster added noted.
The company’s production will be shifted from two West Midland sites to one “through the middle of the decade”.
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