JEDDAH/MUMBAI — Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), owned by Tata Motors, plans to invest SR4.5 billion ($1.2 billion) in setting up an automotive facility to manufacture 50,000 Land Rover vehicles per year by 2017 in Saudi Arabia, the National Industrial Clusters Development Program, under the Saudi Ministry of Commerce & Industry, said in a statement Tuesday. The factory will arise either in Jubail or Yanbu industrial cities, the statement added. Jaguar Land Rover has signed a letter of intent with the Saudi government to study the feasibility of setting up a factory to build its models locally. It is now beginning a detailed study for the plant, the company said in a statement. “Saudi Arabia is an attractive potential development option,” Ralf Speth, Jaguar Land Rover's chief executive officer, said in the company's statement. “This is an exciting project that could enable Jaguar Land Rover to establish a joint venture partnership in a part of the world where luxury vehicle sales are expected to rise.” JLR, which began construction of a factory in China last month, said further in a statement Tuesday. It had already identified opportunities for aluminum component production in the Kingdom. The British carmaker expects to announce further plans in Saudi Arabia next year, it said, adding that levels of investment had not been discussed in detail and the discussions were at “a preliminary stage.” “We are committed to further international partnerships to meet record demand for our highly sought after vehicles,” Ralf Speth, JLR chief executive officer said in the statement. “If we proceed, it will complement our existing expansion in the UK and elsewhere.” “This is an exciting project that could enable Jaguar Land Rover to establish a joint venture partnership in a part of the world where luxury vehicle sales are expected to rise. If we proceed, it will complement our existing expansion in the UK and elsewhere,” Speth added. The luxury carmaker is turning to emerging markets to offset slowing demand in Europe. The company said it was expanding its assembly operations in India and in September announced that it had received approval to form a venture with China's Chery Automobile Co. to begin building cars in the world's biggest auto market. Jaguar Land Rover, based in Gaydon, England, accounted for 67 percent of Tata Motors' revenue in the three months ended Sept. 30. The automaker plans to invest 2 billion pounds ($3.2 billion) in the unit this year to develop new models and expand factories to cater to rising demand in China and Russia, and reduce its dependence on Europe. — SG/Agencies
