Honda Says Swindon Plant in U.K. Cannot Be Saved
Honda Motor Co. has reconfirmed it will shut down its assembly Swindon assembly plant in the U.K. in 2021, ending efforts to save the facility.
Honda Motor Co. has reconfirmed it will shut down its assembly Swindon assembly plant in the U.K. in 2021, ending efforts to save the facility.
Honda acknowledged in February that it intended to close the facility, which has been making Civic small sedans on a one-shift basis since 2014. The plant employs 3,500 people.
The announcement sparked attempts by government and the Unite trade union to find ways to keep the factory open. Honda also tells The Guardian that it hired a consultant to explore other options but decided none of the resulting proposals was feasible. BMW AG quashed rumors in March that it might buy the plant.
Honda has insisted that closing Swindon is unrelated to the U.K.’s undecisive plan to exit the European Union. But The Guardian says analysts—and a Honda briefing in 2018—suggest that Brexit was a key factor in the decision.
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