£300m black cab plant opens in Midlands

The new plant, at Ansty Park near Coventry, is the first all-new vehicle manufacturing facility to be built in Britain for more than a decade and the first dedicated electric vehicle factory in the UK.

It will be used to produce range-extended electric vehicles including the next generation London taxi - TX5 - the world’s first purpose-built, mass-market electric taxi.

This new vehicle, which will go on sale in London later this year, features a three-cylinder Volvo petrol engine which is used as a generator for the vehicle’s battery pack and electric motors. The car is claimed to have a pure EV range of over 70 miles.

The facility, which has the capacity to build over 20,000 vehicles per year, is the result of a £300m investment from LTC’s Chinese parent company Geely Automotive.

The site will also become a globally connected research and development centre in electric vehicle powertrains and lightweight aluminium body structures, which will be applied in all vehicles made at the plant.