Land Rover

The British Government has offered a grant of up to 27 million pounds to TATA-owned Jaguar Land Rover for the production of a new 'green' car.

The company will make a decision later this year on whether to go ahead with the 400 million pound project at its factory at Halewood on Merseyside.

The car will be based on Land Rover's LRX Concept vehicle. The car would be the smallest, lightest and most efficient.

Phil Popham, managing director of Land Rover, said: "We welcome the Government's support for this project, which would form a key part of our future product plans and which we very much want to put into production."

Around 2,000 workers are employed at Halewood.

The plant produces the Land Rover Freelander 2 and Jaguar X-Type.

The Government said the aid would be taken from the Grant for Business Investment scheme, which is separate from the 2.3 billion pound Automotive Assistance Program.