| The UK’s largest remaining independent sports-car maker TVR was set to announce the location of its new plant as AE went to press this month.
TVR announced in April that its Blackpool factory was to close with the loss of 260 jobs when its lease on the current plant expired in six months. With just four months left, the company is now expected to make its decision on where the new site will be located. The decision will affect the remaining 189 workers – 71 were laid off at Easter following a downturn in production.
The company, now owned by 25-year-old Russian millionaire Nikolai Smolensky, previously claimed that it would “maintain a UK presence”, although it was not clear if this would include a UK production base.
As AE went to press, a spokesperson for TVR said: “There are no plans to shift complete car production abroad although there is the possibly that some sub-assembly may be done overseas. We will be issuing a release shortly on the decision over the new site.”
 |
| Where next for the Sagaris and TVR? |
Wales is believed to be one of the sites originally up for consideration, as is an alternative area in Blackpool that was put forward by the borough council.
The Transport and General Workers Union regional industrial organiser Andy Robertson said: “TVR is considering a number of offers including one from the council which we have seen and I believe to be an excellent offer.”
He added: “TVR was offered the site on the Squire’s Gate area of Blackpool business park which would have included a factory, head office and a test track for the cars. There was talk of space somewhere in Blackpool itself so that tourists could watch the cars being built."
Despite the closure of its long-standing Blackpool site, TVR has made it clear that ultimately it is looking to expand, increasing production from around 5-600 units a year to as many as 5,000. In order to do this it says it must move production from the scattered series of building that it has occupied for the past 30 years.
It is also looking to address the problems it has faced since 1 January when exports were halted as TVR’s engines, which are produced completely in-house, do not currently conform to the EU’s Euro IV emissions standards. Once this has been resolved, the company is hoping to make a return to the US market. |
|
