Vauxhall’s Luton manufacturing plant has been saved by new owners Groupe PSA. The factory will receive additional funding to boost its output by 2019.
PSA Peugeot–Citroen, the second largest car manufacturer in Europe, bought Vauxhall in 2017, and since then the future of Vauxhall’s Luton van plant has been in doubt.
It is the final remaining van manufacturing factory in the UK.
Why has Vauxhall’s Luton van plant been saved?
PSA achieved record sales of LCVs in 2017 and this success has led the company to invest in the plant.
The plant, which is famous for its production of light commercial vehicles (LCVs), rolled out 60,000 Vauxhall (and Opel) Vivaros in 2017.
A ‘performance plan’, negotiated through the Unite Trade Union and the Luton plant opened the door for the investment.
The plan is to increase the quality of manufacture and achieve annual sales of 100,000 vehicles by 2019.
What will the Vauxhall van factory build in 2019?
PSA are seeking to converge the Opel and Vauxhall Vivaro models onto their EMP2 platform in a bid to increase efficiency by reducing the number of model variants.
Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, said: ‘This announcement is great news for the UK automotive sector and, especially, the Luton plant.
‘We will continue to work with policy makers to ensure the UK remains as competitive as possible now and in the future.’
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