Owned by India's Tata Motors, JLR also said it will build electric drive units at its Wolverhampton engine plant and create a new battery assembly centre in Hams Hall, near Birmingham, as it develops a greener vehicle range. JLR builds a higher proportion of its cars in Britain than any other major or medium-sized car maker and has spent millions preparing for Brexit, in case of tariffs or customs checks. But it lost STG354 million ($A629m) between April and September 2018 and had already cut around 1000 roles in Britain, shut its Solihull plant for two weeks and announced a three-day week at its Castle Bromwich site. JLR's chief executive Ralf Speth said on Thursday he needed to go further as part of the company's turnaround plan. "We are taking decisive action to help deliver long-term growth, in the face of multiple geopolitical and regulatory disruptions as well as technology challenges facing the automotive industry," Speth said.