By investing a further £250m in its Oxford manufacturing plant by 2015, MINI boosts its UK operations to support the company’s international growth strategy. That money will be spent to get steel body pressings operation at Swindon and engine plant at Hams Hall near Birmingham. That, and the £500m UK investment announced in June 2011, will also provide the 5500 UK workers with additional Job security.
MINI’s parent company BMW is on track with their growth strategy of the MINI brand. The expansion plan will result in increasing volumes and up to 10 different models in the new line-up in the mid-term. This is not the limit either and there will be more investment at the plant, because the complexity of new model lines means that additional production capacity for MINI sales beyond Oxford’s maximum capacity. Part of the new investment is to develop specific production facilities to meet these requirements.
BMW proudly adds this to the list of their contribution to the UK’s economy:
- the activities of BMW Group contribute £1.2 billion each year to UK GDP
- for every additional £1 contribution to UK GDP directly generated by the company and its dealer network, £2.20 in GDP is created across the UK economy
- BMW Group and its dealer network employ 18,000 people directly while supporting over 46,000 UK jobs in total
- 80 per cent of MINIs and 90 per cent of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars are exported. In total, £2.4 billion worth of cars and engines are exported each year, accounting for around one per cent of all goods exported by UK companies.
- BMW Group and its dealer network spend nearly £1.2 billion each year sourcing goods and services from UK-based suppliers.
- Through the payment of employee income tax, national insurance contributions, business rates and VAT on vehicle sales, the activities of BMW Group and its dealer network directly contribute over £900 million per annum to the UK Exchequer