There are a few weeds to be taken care of as the motor industry, energy providers, related suppliers and authorities take us down the green road towards 2030 and onwards, writes Robin Roberts. The haste and race to have low emission cars and other vehicles on our roads is tripping over some serious issues, notably cost, and not just for vehicles and infrastructure but the expense of losing … [Read more...]
Jobs boost for Welsh firm supplying luxury car brands
Welshpool firm CastAlum is significantly expanding production and creating up to 50 jobs with support from the Welsh Government. The global aluminium component supplier, which has been based in the town for 20 years, is investing £5 million in its facilities in the area. The Welsh Government’s SMART Innovation programme has provided technical support for a number of recent projects with … [Read more...]
Ellesmere Port plant future hopes raised
The parent company of Vauxhall and the British Government have been in talks about the future of Ellesmere Port car assembly plant. Britain is "very hopeful" that a good outcome can be found for the Astra assembly plant and its 1,000 workers, including 300 from Wales. British business minister Kwasi Kwarteng said there had been encouraging signs from PSA Group, which includes Vauxhall, and its … [Read more...]
Vauxhall Ellesmere Port future balanced
Media reports suggest Stellantis will decide on the future of its Vauxhall Ellesmere Port plant in the next few days. A decision on future investment is imminent, a spokesman for the automaker has told Automotive News Europe. The factory employs about 1,000 workers making Astra cars and about a third of them commute from Wales. Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said some months ago that he had to … [Read more...]
Thousands of driving jobs unfilled
The UK is facing a shortage of 76,000 thousand drivers, despite the wages being higher than the UK average and jobs waiting. Mark Hall from Divert.co.uk, a rubbish removal company based in York, said, “Young kids don’t think the professional driving industry is sexy enough and instead they are all spending £30,000 on a university degree with a dubious title such as media studies only to … [Read more...]
Tradelines 10 February
The Hyundai Upgrade Event, running throughout February, offers buyers some of the most significant savings ever seen across the Hyundai line-up. Running in tandem with existing deposit contribution offers across the range, the Hyundai Upgrade event allows buyers additional savings of up to £3,000 on top of deposit contributions of up to £3,000 for selected models. Bentley Motors has announced … [Read more...]
Newslines 9 February
A £750M bus and train network in South Wales will be marginally delayed from 2023, due to implications of coping with the Coronavirus crisis. Transport for Wales was nationalised after passenger numbers collapsed last year and operator Keolis-Amey couldn’t make it pay and Welsh Government has pumped in £167M to keep the public transport services running. The reported deal with Korea’s Hyundai … [Read more...]
Nissan decision puts pressure on Ellesmere Port investment
Britain is charging up for a battery cars’ future. Nissan said today that its Sunderland car plant is secure for the long term as a result of the trade deal reached between the UK and the EU. It already makes traction batteries next to its Sunderland assembly plant and now says additional battery production will be invested where it has 6,000 direct employees and supports nearly 70,000 jobs in … [Read more...]
Sparks to fly over ev decision making?
An emerging combination of shortages in both new vehicle supply and fleet management skills could lead to “poor decisions” being made as businesses move towards electrification, FleetCheck is warning. Very long lead times – caused by factors including Brexit, the pandemic and slow production ramp-ups in the switch to EVs – were being magnified as a problem thanks to a decrease in available … [Read more...]
Battery plant is a non-starter for Wales
Wales has lost another massive automotive investment. The £2.6 Billion Britishvolt gigaplant which held the promise of 5,000 construction jobs and 3,000 permanent posts will not now be built at St Athan and the company says it will go to a 230 acres site in Blythe, Northumberland. The decision follows a few months of talks with Welsh Government during which time Britishvolt appointed Italian … [Read more...]