James Bond car maker Aston Marton to open new factory in South Wales
James Bond car maker Aston Martin is to open a new factory in South Wales, creating more than 750 jobs.
The luxury marque will build its new DBX model at a plant in St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan from 2020 following a worldwide search for a new manufacturing facility.
The plant will be Aston Martin's second factory and will create an estimated 1,000 jobs in the wider supply chain and local businesses.
The firm is famous for the sporty models associated with 007, and Daniel Craig drove an Aston DB10 in the latest Bond movie Spectre.
Aston Martin's chief executive Andrew Palmer said: "During our 103-year history, Aston Martin has become famous for making beautiful hand-crafted cars in England.
"Through a detailed evaluation of over 20 potential global locations for this new manufacturing facility, we were consistently impressed with the focus on quality, cost and speed from the Welsh Government team.
"As a great British company, we look forward to St Athan joining Gaydon as our second centre of hand-crafted manufacturing excellence."
First Minister Carwyn Jones said: "I am delighted to officially welcome Aston Martin to Wales. We have been working closely with the company for almost two years in the face of fierce competition from other potential sites across the world.
"Our success today is testament to the reputation, dedication and skills of the Welsh workforce, all qualities that are synonymous with such a luxury, hand-crafted brand as Aston Martin.
"Today is the start of a long-term relationship between Wales and Aston Martin. We will work together in building on the strong foundations of our partnership to nurture a prosperous and rewarding future for this iconic company and its skilled workforce in Wales."
Economy Minister Edwina Hart said the plant making the DBX would mean cars rolling off a production line in Wales for the first time in almost 50 years.
She said: "We already have more than 150 companies involved in the automotive supply chain, employing around 18,000 people and generating over £3 billion to the Welsh economy, but this will be the first time in almost 50 years that we will be seeing vehicles roll off a production line in Wales."
