Jaguar Land Rover 'in £500m expansion' in Whitley

The plans include a bridge across the A45 linking the existing site with a new one south of Whitley

Car giant Jaguar Land Rover is expected to lodge a planning application for a "huge expansion" of its Coventry base, says the city council.

The company plans to invest more than £500m in its research and development plant at Whitley, a spokesman said.

He said the move was in addition to plans to double the size of operations at the centre, unveiled in March.

JLR said it was looking at opportunities to develop its presence in Whitley.

A spokesman said the firm would share more details when it could.

'Thousands of jobs'

A planning application is expected to be submitted to the council and Warwick District Council by 8 February.

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The city council said the plans covered JLR's current site alongside part of a new 60-acre site south of Whitley and could create "thousands of new jobs".

JLR's investment is likely to top £500m, Coventry City Council said

The announcement followed "months of detailed negotiation" involving JLR, the council and Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), it added.

LEP chairman Jonathan Browning said: "It is hard to over-state the importance of this announcement.

"Just last year, Jaguar Land Rover doubled the size of its land around its world HQ at Whitley, and this, in turn, is another doubling in size."

The LEP is bidding for a government grant of £40m to build infrastructure, including a bridge across the A45 linking both sites.

JLR will carry out a public consultation on the scheme between 21 and 23 January and residents can also have their say after the planning application is submitted.

If permission is granted, work is likely to get under way by the end of 2016.