INEOS Automotive confirms acquisition of Hambach production site from Mercedes-Benz
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The former Mercedes-Benz site in Hambach will manufacture INEOS’s uncompromising 4x4, the Grenadier
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Hambach is a state-of-the-art facility with a highly skilled workforce and is well located for access to markets, suppliers, and automotive talent
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The site currently builds smart EQ fortwo electric vehicles, which INEOS will continue to produce alongside the Grenadier on a contract manufacturing basis
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INEOS Group Chairman Sir Jim Ratcliffe said: “Hambach presented us with a unique opportunity that we simply could not ignore: to buy a modern automotive manufacturing facility with a world-class workforce. INEOS Automotive set out a vision to build the world’s best utilitarian 4x4, and at our new home in Hambach, we will do just that.”
INEOS Automotive has acquired the manufacturing facility at Hambach from Mercedes-Benz and will start to build its Grenadier 4x4 there in late 2021. The acquisition secures the future of the site and safeguards many jobs that might otherwise have been lost.
Hambach is the ideal facility for production of the Grenadier. One of Europe’s most modern automotive manufacturing sites, it is home to a highly experienced and capable workforce, has an excellent track record amongst Mercedes plants for the quality of its output, and recently benefited from a major investment to enable the production of larger vehicles. Additionally the site’s location on the French-German border, only 200km from Stuttgart, gives excellent access to supply chains, automotive talent and target markets. Manufacturing at Hambach ensures that INEOS remains on track to meet its plans to deliver the Grenadier to customers in early 2022.
Under the terms of the acquisition, Mercedes-Benz will contract INEOS to continue to produce the smart EQ fortwo and some Mercedes-Benz components at Hambach. When combined with INEOS's plans for the Grenadier, this translates into some 1,300 jobs at Hambach, including commitments to onsite suppliers.
“This acquisition marks our biggest milestone yet in the development of the Grenadier. Alongside the exhaustive testing programme that our prototype vehicles are now undergoing, we can now begin preparations at Hambach to build our 4x4 from late next year for delivery to our customers around the globe.”
Dirk Heilmann, Chief Executive Officer of INEOS Automotive
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INEOS Automotive contact details:
Viktoria Kirkova-Fane
Global PR Manager
viktoria.kirkova@ineos.com
+44 (0) 7733 150 023
Tom Waugh
Senior Global PR Officer
tom.waugh@ineos.com
+44 (0) 7776 454 747
ABOUT INEOS AUTOMOTIVE
In 2017, INEOS Chairman Jim Ratcliffe, a car enthusiast and experienced adventurer, identified a gap in the market for an uncompromising 4X4 engineered for modern day compliance and reliability. INEOS Automotive Limited was formed and a senior team of automotive professionals assembled to bring the vision to reality with a fresh perspective of 4X4 development and manufacturing.
In 2022 the INEOS Grenadier was launched: a truly global 4X4 built from the ground up that combines rugged British spirit and design with German engineering rigour. The Grenadier provides best-in-class off-road capability, durability, and reliability with the modern comfort and refinement customers expect wherever they are in the world. In 2023 a double-cab pick-up variant of the Grenadier was launched called the Quartermaster.
INEOS Automotive is a subsidiary of INEOS, a leading manufacturer of petrochemicals, specialty chemicals and oil products. It employs 24,500 people across 29 businesses, with a production network spanning 154 sites in 27 countries. From paints to plastics, textiles to technology, medicines to mobile phones, materials manufactured by INEOS enhance almost every aspect of modern life. In 2025, INEOS had sales of $55bn. To find out more about INEOS Automotive, visit www.ineosgrenadier.com.
