Jaguar Land Rover has confirmed it will begin restarting parts of its manufacturing operations “in the coming days,” marking the next phase of its recovery from a severe cyber-attack that brought production to a standstill.
The luxury carmaker, which produces the Jaguar and Land Rover brands, has spent weeks trying to restore its systems after the hack on 31 August forced the shutdown of factories and retail sites worldwide.
In a statement on Monday, the UK’s largest automotive employer said it was carrying out a “controlled, phased restart of our operations.”
The update came shortly after the UK government unveiled a £1.5bn loan guarantee for JLR on Saturday to support its supply chain. Business secretary Peter Kyle, speaking at Labour’s annual conference in Liverpool, described the package as “a huge amount of money to help a hugely important company” as well as “countless businesses in the supply chain that are being affected.”
The funding itself will come from private banks, backed by the government’s export credit agency, UK Export Finance, which will cover any potential losses should JLR fail to repay. The loan is expected to ease pressure on the company’s cash reserves as it tackles the high costs of investigating the breach and rebuilding its IT systems. Analysts, however, believe the Tata-owned group is not at risk of default after nearly two years of strong profitability.
Two people familiar with the company’s plans said JLR’s engine plant in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, is expected to be the first site to reopen.
The prospect of even a partial restart will be welcomed by suppliers, many of whom have endured almost a month without orders from their most important customer. But uncertainty remains over how quickly financial support will flow through the supply chain, with some smaller manufacturers having already laid off staff in the immediate aftermath of the hack.
