PSA confirms the new Peugeot Expert will
be built in UK
The future for Vauxhall’s Luton plant has been assured with Vauxhall/Opel owner PSA confirming that the next generation of Vivaro van will be built in Luton. The new model will go on sale mid-2019.
Speaking
at the announcement in the factory, PSA Chairman Carlos Tavares said:
“This is a major milestone for the future of the Luton plant and a key
enabler to serve our ambitions in the commercial vehicle market,
guaranteeing customers the best offering in this segment.”
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Tavares
announced that production would increase in Luton from 2017’s 70,000
vehicles to 100,000, with the new van based on the PSA group EMP2
platform that underpins everything from the
Peugeot 3008 to the new DS 7.
This is likely to mean a move over to PSA diesel engines to power the
Vivaro and we can also expect hybrid and full-ev models, with the
chairman revealing that the new Vivaro will be electrified at some point
in its lifecycle.
Although the announcement only mentioned Vauxhall and Opel Vivaro models, PSA confirmed that Peugeot Expert and Citroen Dispatch will also be built in Luton alongside Vauxhall and Opel versions of the Vivaro if demand for vans continues to increase.
Luton’s future has been secured following discussions between PSA,
the UK Government and Luton Borough Council, with the UK contributing a
£9m investment in the plant on top of PSA’s outlay on the project of
close to £100m.
Business secretary Greg Clarke, also present at
the announcement, said: “Today’s decision is a vote of confidence in
Vauxhall’s highly skilled workforce and the UK’s world-leading
automotive sector. The investment in upgrading the production platform
will safeguard and grow jobs, ensuring the future of the Luton plant
well into the next decade and help ensure the plant is well positioned
for future Vauxhall models to be made in the UK.”
Van sales
across Europe increased rapidly in 2017, with PSA taking over half of
that growth. Although van sales dropped in the UK in 2017, sales have
picked up again in 2018 with sales rising 6.4% in February.
SMMT Chief Executive, Mike Hawes said: “This announcement is great
news for the UK automotive sector and, especially, the Luton plant. The
UK continues to be a centre of excellence for vehicle production thanks
to our engineering expertise, high levels of productivity and a
collaborative relationship with government which has enabled us to build
a robust industrial strategy and a sector deal. We will continue to
work with policy makers to ensure the UK remains as competitive as
possible now and in the future so we can continue to build on our long
heritage in vehicle manufacturing.”
The current Luton-built
Vauxhall Vivaro van was launched in 2014 under a partnership with
Renault, Nissan and Fiat that also produced the respective Trafic, NV300 and Talento
vans from those marques. The acquisition of Vauxhall and Opel by PSA in
2017 has resulted in the decision to switch the Vivaro onto the PSA
group’s architecture from mid-2019 and it means the van will use the
same EMP2 platform that already underpins the current versions of the
Citroen Dispatch and
Peugeot Expert vans.
