Tata Motors' JLR plans new plant in Poland

Tata Motors-owned luxury carmaker Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is planning to set up a new plant to make about 200,000 cars annually in eastern Europe and is zeroing in on Poland.

According to The Sunday Times, JLR executives have been weighing up bids from Slovakia, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Turkey for the factory, which will make about 200,000 cars a year.

Industry sources told the newspaper that Poland had offered 'huge' incentives. Jaguar produced about 450,000 vehicles last year, but plans to expand to one million. The expansion drive has seen its three British factories in Solihull, Castle Bromwich and Halewood pushed to capacity.

The firm opened a factory in China last year and another is under construction in Brazil.

A decision on Poland could be announced within weeks, although sources said Slovakia remained an outside possibility.

Reports suggested the plant could be built in Krakow at a cost of £1.2 billion. Next on the list is expected to be a factory in the US or Mexico.

A JLR statement said "Jaguar Land Rover continues to evaluate opportunities around the world. Europe is just one of the places under consideration. No decisions have been taken".