Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) on the other hand is lowering the sails on the electric car

Due to the weak electric vehicle market in Europe, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) slows down the deployment of its battery-electric vehicle. All inside “hard worker” to meet growing customer demand for PHEV (plug-in hybrid car) technology by making more models available, said CEO Adrian Mardell.

Results that slowly return

As a reminder, according to announcements made in 2021, JLR had previously planned to launch six electric Land Rover models by 2026. However, this number has been reduced to four. The company also plans to launch two fully electric models from the Jaguar brand by then. “We are a little slower than we announced three years agoMardell said. We take the time necessary to ensure that the vehicles we bring to market are the best we have ever created. »

JLR (Jaguar Land Rover) has just presented excellent financial results at the end of the third quarter of its financial year 2023-2024, which will be closed at the end of the first quarter of this year. The third quarter financial results give JLR a cash position of 626 million pounds (732 million euros), which gives the manufacturer a total cash position of 4.3 billion pounds (5 billion euros). The company’s total debt amounts to 1.6 billion pounds (1.87 billion euros). With this fiscal year’s rate forecast at more than 8%, net debt should fall to £1 billion (1.17 billion euros) due to improved cash flow. JLR aims to achieve positive cash flow in 2025, mainly due to improved sales. Indeed, the company is benefiting from the range of Range Rovers that are appreciated in international markets.

Electric car: JLR wants to take its time

JLR recently opened orders for the Range Rover electric SUV, which will be Land Rover’s first electric model when it launches later this year. An electric Range Rover Sport will follow, as indicated in its 2023 annual report. These two electric vehicles will share the large MLA SUV platform as combustion engine versions. Still undergoing road tests, the future Range Rover Electric already has more than 16,000 orders on its waiting list. JLR also adds that mid-size electric SUV prototypes are in development, along with several future Jaguars. Meanwhile, the manufacturer continues to reorganize its factories in the UK and internationally. The rollout of the new network standards intended to suit the Range Rover, Defender and Discovery is also starting in Asia and Europe, while Jaguar’s network will be reduced to the bare minimum. Indeed, the group wants to place this brand at a higher level, which should be between Bentley and Rolls-Royce, with only electric cars.

Amazing demand for plug-in hybrids

Last year, across Europe, JLR saw the biggest increase in plug-in sales of any car manufacturer. Sales of the company’s plug-in hybrid grew by 68% to 45,224 units in 2023, according to data from market analyst Dataforce. “The huge increase in PHEV sales was a surpriseMardell said. We are working hard to make more PHEVs available in the market. » Note that sales of the JLR plug-in have been limited in recent months by supply issues.

Some automakers are seeing a decline in initial demand for battery electric vehicles (BEVs) globally. Ford recently announced that it will focus more on hybrids. “ Diversification will play an even more important role in the transformation of our industry and they will be here for a long time”he said and added that margins on hybrids were close to those of combustion engine cars and “higher up” than the margin of electric vehicles. As a reminder, the Ford Kuga was the best-selling plug-in hybrid in Europe in 2023 with 53,659 units sold, beating the Volvo XC60.