Jaguar Land Rover has opened a new £20 million (approximately Rs 174.36 crore) technical centre for its Special Vehicles Operations (SVO) division. The site, located near its Coventry base in the UK, is now SVO’s headquarters and expands over 20,000 square metres.

It features facilities for manufacturing and painting, as well as technical areas, customer commissioning and presentation zones.

250 new employees will also join SVO's workforce this year, illustrating the demand and growth of the division, which has just completed its second year in business.

SVO boss John Edwards said of the news: “The new Special Vehicle Operations Technical Centre is a major step forward in meeting the desires of our most discerning customers. There are more than 200 skilled employees here who are committed to outstanding quality and craftsmanship in everything they do.

“The SVO Technical Centre is very modern facility, inspired by a Formula 1 engineering centre. It covers 20,000 square metres including a manufacturing area, one of the world’s most eco-friendly and advanced paint shops, custom-built commissioning suite, technical suite, presentation suite and offices.”

JLR expects demand for its SVO products to continue to grow. Some of the most recent SVO products include the Range Rover Sport SVR, Range Rover SVAutobiography and Jaguar F-type SVR.

With the opening of its new facility, the division will now be able to cater to a higher demand and offer more personalisation options on each vehicle it produces.

JLR also confirmed it has invested £7.5 million (Rs 65.39 crore approximately) into a brand-new premises for its Classic business division located about 50 yards away from the new SVO building. It's due to open later this year.

The main JLR site is also due for an expansion thanks to a new £500 million (Rs 4,359 crore approximately) construction, which was recently approved by the Coventry and Warwick District councils.