Aston Martin's main plant is located in Gaydon, England, but in late 2016 the automaker started construction of a second plant in St Athan, Wales in anticipation of new, higher volume models.
Located on the site of a former military air base, the plant is scheduled to start production of Aston Martin's DBX SUV in 2019. It will also be the production location for two sedan models possibly sold under the Lagonda brand.
The existing plant back in Gaydon will remain Aston Martin's hub for sports car models.
The automaker on Wednesday announced that the first of two phases of the St Athan plant's construction has been completed. The first phase included the completion of a showroom, office unit and employee restaurant. The second phase, which started last April, will see the transformation of three aircraft hangers located at the site transformed into the actual plant housing the production line.
“The St Athan facility is really starting to take shape,” Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer said in a statement. “With the completion of this first phase, it is another milestone on our journey in Wales, and an important part of Aston Martin’s Second Century plan.”
The plan Palmer is referring to calls for the launch of seven cars in seven years. The plan was announced two years ago and the first two of the promised seven cars have already been introduced in the form of the DB11 (2016) and new Vantage (2017). Due this year will be a new Vanquish and in 2019 we'll see the DBX SUV.
The order of Aston Martin's three remaining models isn't clear but we're currently expecting the SUV to be followed by a mid-engine supercar in 2020 and then a sedan in each of the years 2021 and 2022. Beyond this date, Aston Martin will repeat the seven-year cycle with redesigned cars. And along the way we'll also see special edition models like the Valkyrie hypercar and RapidE electric car.
