VAUXHALL has announced 66 jobs will be lost at its Ellesmere Port factory in the coming weeks.

The manufacturer, owned by vehicle giant Stellantis, said it was "adapting the size" of its workforce as it begins the transition to manufacturing the all-new electric model at the Port plant.

Earlier this year, following months of uncertainty and speculation, the future of Vauxhall's Ellesmere Port plant was secured following a £100 million investment.

The town's site will become the first Stellantis plant to produce a solely battery-electric van, in both commercial and passenger versions, by the end of next year, for Vauxhall, Opel, Peugeot and Citroën brands and for both domestic and export markets.

It will mean the plant's workforce will make the Vauxhall Combo-e, the Peugeot e-Partner and the Citroen e-Berlingo, while production of the Vauxhall Astra family hatchback will come to an end.

A Vauxhall UK company spokesperson said: “As we begin the transition to manufacturing our all-new electric model at Ellesmere Port, and refitting the plant in the coming months, we will adapting the size of our workforce.

"56 employees will leave the business with a voluntary redundancy offer by the end of this year and 10 further employees will leave on the same basis early next year.

"We will be investing around £100m to secure the electric vehicle future of the plant and expect to be producing the new model from later in 2022.”

At the time the £100 million investment was announced in July this year, Stellantis said its strong willingness to ensure a sustainable future for Ellesmere Port was consistently supported by the UK Government, Cheshire West and Chester Council, Cheshire and Warrington Local Enterprise partnership and Cheshire College.

Carlos Tavares, Chief Executive Officer at Stellantis, said: “Performance is always the trigger for sustainability and this £100 million investment demonstrates our commitment to the UK and to Ellesmere Port.

"I particularly want to thank our highly skilled, dedicated workforce for their patience and contribution; we never let them down.

"Equally, I want to thank our partners the Unite Union for their open mindset and strong cooperation and, of course, the UK Government for their continued support. Producing battery electric vehicles here will support clean, safe and affordable mobility for the citizens. Since 1903 Vauxhall has manufactured vehicles in Britain and we will continue to do so."