BMW Group has today announced a £250 million investment in its UK manufacturing operations by the end of 2015.
The investment will be made at BMW’s manufacturing plant in Oxford, its steel body pressings operation at Swindon and its engine plant at Hams Hall near Birmingham, to support the company’s international growth strategy for the MINI brand with increasing volumes and up to 10 different models in the new line-up in the mid-term.
The move comes on top of the £500 million UK investment announced in June 2011 and will secure 5,500 UK jobs.
The announcement was made during a visit to MINI Plant Oxford by the UK’s business secretary Vince Cable and Harald Krueger, a BMW board member.
Commenting on the news, Krueger said: “A year ago we announced a further investment of £500 million in our UK production network by 2014 and today we are announcing an additional £250 million, taking us through to 2015. This brings the total to £1.75 billion since 2000.
“Over the last 11 years, MINI has been a unique global success and the BMW Group has even greater plans for the future development of the brand. Plant Oxford has played a major role in this with cars being exported to over 100 countries around the world. This additional investment is great news for all our employees in the UK and shows the BMW Group’s commitment to Britain as a vital manufacturing base for us.”
Cable added: "BMW’s ambitious plans for MINI will ensure its UK sites at Oxford, Swindon and Hams Hall remain at the centre of MINI production worldwide. The investment of £250 million in addition to the £500 million last year demonstrates BMW’s commitment to the UK and safeguards jobs for the future."
As the volume and variety of the MINI model line-up grows, there will be additional production requirements for engines and body panels from the BMW Group’s specialist UK facilities in Hams Hall and Swindon. Part of the new investment is to develop specific production facilities to meet these requirements.
BMW Group and its dealer network employ 18,000 people directly while supporting over 46,000 UK jobs in total.
As a global company, the BMW Group operates 25 production and assembly facilities in 14 countries and has a global sales network in more than 140 countries. In 2011, the group sold about 1.67 million cars and more than 113,000 motorcycles worldwide.
As at 31 December 2010, the BMW Group had a workforce of approximately 95,500 employees.
