JLR opens new plant in Brazil to mark latest phase of its global expansion
VEHICLE manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover has marked the latest phase of its global expansion with the official opening of its new £240m factory in Brazil.
The plant, built in Itatiaia in the state of Rio de Janeriro, is the first time a UK automotive group has opened a production centre in Latin America.
The new factory is also the company’s first wholly-owned overseas facility and marks a further phase in its global expansion strategy following the opening of its Chinese joint venture factory in 2014.
The company said the opening of the new plant, together with sites in China and India, plus a proposed development on Slovakia, was important because it allowed JLR to offer its customers even more new models, protected the company against currency fluctuations and created a globally competitive business.
The new facility is assembling both the Range Rover Evoque and Land Rover Discovery Sport for Brazilian customers. Vehicles will be on sale in dealers across Brazil this month.
While it was never stated intentionally, it was always the company’s goal to have the operation up and running before the Rio Olympic Games later this summer.
At the plant inauguration, Wolfgang Stadler, Executive Director, Manufacturing, said: “The opening of Jaguar Land Rover’s new world-class facility in Brazil marks the latest exciting milestone in our global expansion.”
“Land Rover is already Brazil’s market-leader for mid-sized premium SUVs, accounting for more than 30% of all sales in that segment. The Evoque and Discovery Sport will now be manufactured for the first time in Latin America, building on their existing popularity with customers in Brazil.”
The plant includes Jaguar Land Rover’s first overseas Education Business Partnership Centre which will provide a range of classroom activities for up to 12,000 local children each year. These will help them to develop key skills, work awareness and hopefully inspire them to pursue careers with JLR.
Mr Stadler added: “We are proud of the strong links that we have established with the communities close to our existing plants and the same is true here in Brazil. Our Education Business Partnership Centre is just one step we are taking to deliver exciting educational programmes to local children of all ages. Our ambition is to encourage them to consider a career in the automotive industry in the future.”
The new plant has been designed to support the company’s future plans. It includes a series of environmental features, such as rainwater collection and the planting of more than 1,200 indigenous trees to help preserve and improve the natural habitat around the factory.
JLR is also aiming to achieve the globally recognised LEED Gold sustainability accreditation – the first automotive vehicle assembly plant in Brazil to do so.
The plant includes cutting-edge manufacturing technologies and has the most advanced Emissions Conformity and Certification facility in South America.
As part of its on-going commitment to the Brazilian automotive industry, JLR has sourced major components such as the seats, cockpit, exhaust, chassis and powertrain assembly from local suppliers including Benteler and IAC. In addition, JLR has invested in its technical assistance services to help suppliers support increased levels of localisation in the future.
JLR has had a presence in the Brazilian market for more than 25 years. In the first five months of 2016, it saw sales increase by 11% in the market. Land Rover is the leading premium SUV brand in Brazil and Jaguar is one of the country’s fastest growing premium brands with sales increasing by 70% in the first five months of 2016.
Brazil is one of the company’s top 15 markets and the Range Rover Evoque, Range Rover Sport and Land Rover Discovery are the strongest selling vehicles in the country, which has 35-strong dealer network covering most of the country’s major territories.
