According to international media resources, US auto giant Ford Motor Co. will close two plants in the United Kingdom. Commercial vehicle production at Ford's Southampton Assembly Plant and stamping and tooling work at the company's Dagenham Engine Plant will cease on July 26.
Ford's Transit van production in Southampton will switch to
Turkey where, as Ford stated, costs are "significantly lower" than anywhere in
Europe, even after delivery charges. The Turkish factory in Kocaeli, which has been in full production mode since 2009, has much bigger capacity than Southampton, building 185,000 vans in 2012, compared with the
UK plant's 28,000 units.