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Lotus Opens Hethel Performance Hub to Outside Makers

The site will offer third-party engineering, testing and flexible low-volume assembly to vehicle makers, backed by government endorsement and local infrastructure upgrades.

Overview

  • The Hethel Performance Hub was formally opened on Thursday, June 26, 2026, by Industry Minister Chris McDonald in a ceremony at Lotus’s Norfolk headquarters.
  • Lotus says the Hub combines engineering, manufacturing and testing on one site so external firms can develop, test and build vehicles using Lotus expertise.
  • Early partners announced include Charge Holdings, which is relocating to Hethel, and Zenos, which has signed heads of terms to produce roadsters at the facility.
  • Hethel’s workshop-style assembly and a 2022 factory overhaul that raised theoretical capacity give Lotus room to offer flexible, limited-volume production to other OEMs.
  • Local councils have delivered road and site works to support expansion, and ministers pitched the Hub as a way to create skilled jobs, strengthen supply chains and boost UK vehicle exports.