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James Dyson, the billionaire founder and chairman of household appliance company Dyson, shows a new grooming device at an event in New York earlier this month. The British firm has selected Singapore as the site of its manufacturing facility that will produce electric cars. Photo: Bloomberg

Sick of your Tesla? Dyson promises an electric car that won’t suck

  • Dyson will build electric cars at a new facility in Singapore that will be completed in 2020
  • The pioneer of the bagless vacuum cleaner is investing US$2.6 billion into its electric car initiative

James Dyson, the billionaire British inventor of the bagless vacuum cleaner, has chosen to build his electric car in Singapore to be close to Asian customers, supply chains and a highly skilled workforce.

The 71-year-old entrepreneur, who backed Brexit in the 2016 referendum, is pumping £2 billion (US$2.6 billion) into the launch of an electric car, with a 400-strong British-based engineering team working in secret for the first two-and-a-half years on the project.

Dyson is looking to exploit his company’s expertise in solid-state battery technology and electric motors that are found in his innovative vacuum cleaners and other products, such as bladeless fans and air purifiers.

Dyson was a prominent backer of Britain’s vote to leave the European Union. He has argued that Britain’s future lies in building close ties with fast-growing markets in Asia, and not Europe.

“The decision of where to make our car is complex, based on supply chains, access to markets and the availability of the expertise that will help us achieve our ambitions,” Dyson chief executive Jim Rowan said.

The company has announced plans to invest £200 million in new buildings and a testing track at its campus in Wiltshire, western England.

One of Britain’s most successful engineering companies, it already employs 1,100 people in Singapore, where it makes digital electric motors.

A new two-storey purpose-built manufacturing facility is expected to be completed in Singapore in 2020, with the first cars on course to be launched in 2021.

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