Britain’s auto industry may never ever have the ability to increase the level of local material to over half in its automobiles to satisfy the requirements embedded in some bilateral trade agreements, the CEO of the nation’s greatest automaker Jaguar Land Rover informed Reuters.
Just around 40 percent of the parts that go into the average British-built vehicle are made locally and some trade deals need between 50 and 55 percent local material, an aspect which could be important for post-Brexit trade.
After Prime Minister Theresa May stated Britain would leave the single market and possibly the customs union when it exits the European Union, there has been greater concentration on the production supply chain.
British-built automobiles can presently count EU-made material but that could alter depending on the terms of the Brexit deal, with Nissan recently calling for a supplier fund to assist increase the number of locally-made components.
Yet the needed investment in services and skills could take years to flourish, and the volumes involved might not justify the costs.
“It will take a long time, if at all it can be managed,” JLR CEO Ralf Speth informed Reuters.
“Jaguar Land Rover is the most significant automobile company in the UK and the only one which really designs, engineers as well as produces in the UK. The volume is still too small to really attract a substantial Tier 1 supplier,” he said.
Britain doest not have significant providers such as Bosch or Michelin which assist significant carbuilding nations like Germany and France respectively to attain a higher level of regional components.
