JLR unveils first fully electric Range Rover at Solihull plant

JLR has unveiled the Range Rover Electric, the brand's first fully electric model in its 56-year history, built at the Solihull plant.

The launch, which follows a year-long delay, marks a major step in JLR's electrification programme in the West Midlands.

The car has a 118.5kWh battery offering a WLTP range of up to 372 miles, and can be rapid-charged from 10 to 80 per cent in around 22 minutes.

The launch is being supported by significant investment across JLR's West Midlands sites.

Around 9,000 employees at Solihull have been upskilled for electrification, with a further 1,500 trained across the wider region.

In Wolverhampton, the Electric Propulsion Manufacturing Centre is now producing battery packs and electric drive units alongside combustion engines.

The work forms part of JLR's £15 billion, five-year ‘Reimagine’ investment programme, which will see the company launch nine fully electric models by 2030 across its Range Rover, Defender, Jaguar and Discovery brands.

Martin Limpert, managing director of Range Rover, said the new model was the result of a decade of "considered engineering".

He said: “This is a pivotal for us at Range Rover, for JLR, I really believe that for us it's also for our partners for our retailers for our communities.

“This secures jobs this provides for the economy and we are really excited.”

The launch comes as JLR continues to recover from last September's cyber-attack, which forced a five-week production shutdown and contributed to a 20.9 per cent fall in annual turnover, to £22.9 billion.

The company reported a strong rebound in its most recent quarter, with sales volumes up more than 60 per cent.

Pictured: The Range Rover Electric being built at JLR’s Solihull plant