Workers at Cowley have been told that plans to produce an estate version of the Rover 75, codenamed the R41, at Cowley will not be affected by the Rover Group sell-off.

The first pre-production versions of the car, which is due to go on sale later this year, were expected to roll off the lines sometime this month.

BMW has not given any indication yet about when the production lines for the new Mini will begin to be installed at Cowley, but insiders expect construction work to start soon.

The new Mini is due to go on sale in the early summer next year and the lines already installed at Longbridge are expected to be moved into parts of the Cowley plant that are presently unused.

The new Mini's arrival will bring the return of Mini production to Oxford, which was also the long-time home of its designer, Sir Alec Issigonis. Workers are still waiting to hear the results of talks between union leaders and BMW management over a range of contractual issues.

BMW confirmed yesterday that it was planning to build a new small car, but had not yet decided where it would be built.

The Cowley site has also been tipped as a possible site for a new Rolls-Royce factory, which BMW said it would build in Britain when it takes control of the brand in 2003.

Prof Milberg said BMW would decide on its location by the end of the year.

He added: "We have taken the necessary decisions, we have set our sights on the future. And we will start implementing these decisions without the slightest delay." *Hundreds of workers will be laid off next week as production of the Rover 75 luxury car at Cowley is temporarily cut back.

While more jobs are in the offing with the arrival of the new Mini at Cowley, the short-term effect will be a stop in night shift working.

Next week, workers who were due to work the night shift will stay at home and the following week the other shift, currently working days, will be given the week off.

Workers, who will be paid to stay at home, said they have been told that single-shift working was a short-term measure while the new owners of the Rover brand, Alchemy Partners, assess demand for the car.

A letter given to employees at Cowley said there was a "critical need to balance customer demand and production." Under the deal between BMW and Alchemy, the Cowley plant will continue to build the Rover 75 saloon for Alchemy, which will take over sales and marketing of the model. BMW chairman Prof Joachim Milberg said: "For a certain transitional period, the BMW Group will also support Alchemy Partners in all necessary activities.

"In particular, we will do this in order to ensure the quality of support rightly expected of us.

"So, our customers can count on this support in the market."

Story date: Saturday 18 March

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.