Tata Motors on Thursday said it is interested in shutting down one of its plants in West Midlands, according to its business plan announced last year. The company said it will make an announcement in this regard by middle of this year. This is in sync with its plan to reduce fixed costs and hasten break-even at Jaguar Land Rover (JLR).
?We are looking at stabilising our portfolio and are interested in reducing our footprint. The plans of shutting one of the two plants in West Midlands is on cards and we will be making an announcement by the middle of this year,? said Ralf Speth, chief executive officer, JLR.
Last year, the company had said shutting of one of the plants in West Midlands was part of its plans to make JLR ?leaner and cost-effective.? The company had said that the shutting down will take place by 2014 and had clarified that there would be no retrenchment. Moreover, it had said that 800 extra jobs will be created at its Halewood plant in Liverpool, which now has 1,800 employees.
Since then, as JLR performance has improved under Tata Motors, it was thought that the company might reconsider its plans of shutting down one of the plants. ?The review of which plant will be retained is being done on the basis of a number of objective economic and business criteria, including cost, quality, efficiency, flexibility and logistics, and of course discussing it with employee representatives. The decision will be announced in due course and the transition will take place through the middle of this decade,? said a spokesperson from Tata Motors.