US company Detroit Electric says it will build its new SP:01 two-seat electric sports car in the UK. The SP:01 will be the world’s fastest production electric vehicle, the company says, and it will be made at a new facility in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire.

Detroit Electric says the SP:01 has a top speed of 249.4kph and a 0-100kph time of 3.7sec. It will go on sale, internationally, later this year. A prototype SP:01 helped the firm to “secure additional investment”. Since then, Detroit Electric says the car has undergone “extensive further development, heralding significant changes to enhance its aerodynamic performance and improve interior comfort and quality”.

The EV is currently undergoing engineering sign-off tests and the final styling of the car will be revealed in the coming weeks. However, it seems clear that the new model is substantially based on an existing Lotus platform. Further down the line, the company says it has plans for a 2+2 electric supercar and a saloon, both of which will be engineered and assembled in Detroit.

The original Detroit Electric company was an electric car producer at the beginning of the 20th century. It built about 13,000 vehicles.