Dyson to Produce EVs in Singapore

U.K.-based home appliance specialist Dyson Ltd. says it will construct a factory in Singapore to build its upcoming electric car.

The company, which selected Singapore over the U.K., China and other Asian countries, aims to complete the EV plant by 2020. Dyson already has an electric motor plant in the city state and employs about 1,100 people in the region.

Dyson CEO Jim Rowan says the “complex” decision was based on access to markets, supply chain and workforce. Company officials claim Brexit wasn’t a factor in rejecting the U.K., but last month they acknowledged that global trade issues made the decision “a lot more turbulent.”

Singapore edged out China in part because of the city state’s strong commitment to intellectual property protection. The close proximity of the two countries also helps, as China supplies about one-third of the components used in Dyson’s other products and is expected to be a major destination for the company’s EV.

Dyson’s plant will be Singapore’s first automotive factory in about 40 years. Ford Motor Co. closed its plant there, which was opened in 1941, in 1980.

Singapore, which has a population of less than 6 million people, is one of the most expensive markets in which to buy a car due to restrictions aimed to curb congestion and pollution. Bloomberg News notes that a Toyota Corolla Altis, one of the most popular models in the country, costs more than $80,000—four times the price of an equivalent model in the U.S.