Tata plans to produce its electric car in Coventry

Thursday, 30 December 2010 00:01 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

London: India’s Tata Motors plans to set up its electric car unit in Coventry. Tata, which owns Jaguar Land Rover, confirmed the Tata Vista EV will be built in the spiritual home of the British motor industry.

The car will be assembled in the UK. The electric batteries would be made in Norway and the drive train would be manufactured in Canada.

The Vista is a small family car with a top speed of 71 mph and is capable of running 110 miles on a single charge. It was one of nine cars cleared by the Department for Transport this week to qualify for a 5,000 pound government subsidy to kick-start the electric car market.

According to a report in ‘The Times,’ Peugeot and Citroen are set to be first in the market with cloned versions of the Mitsubishi iMiev.

The Peugeot IOn and Citroen C-Zero would, with the 5,000 pound handout, cost about 23,000 pounds, although initially, the French are offering the vehicles only on a leasing arrangement for 415 pound sa month.

The Tata Vista plant will start with only 25 workers and expects to assemble 100 cars next year. However, the site at Cross Point business park will have the capacity to ramp up to 1,500 cars a year when, electric vehicle demand picks up.