Aston Martin to reopen Welsh plant after Covid-19 shutdown

The facility, which was shuttered following the introduction of coronavirus lockdown measures, is scheduled to reopen on 5 May.

The company said: "Over the past weeks, Aston Martin Lagonda has been working closely with employees and trade unions to develop and implement protocols to protect employee health and safety in its production facilities so that they are able to return to work." There is currently no date to reopen its other manufacturing operations, at Gaydon, Warwickshire.

The company, which floated on the London Stock Exchange in 2018, also said that the senior leadership team, including non-executive directors, had agreed a voluntary reduction of pay of between 5% and 35%, which will be applied retrospectively for a three-month period from 1 April.

Executive chairman Lawrence Stroll - the billionaire owner of the Racing Point Formula 1 team - will receive a nominal salary of £1 per annum.

The majority of the firm’s workforce is currently furloughed and those who continue to be furloughed from 1 May will receive 80% of base salaries topped up by the government’s funding scheme where appropriate.

A consortium led by Stroll agreed a £500m rescue package for Aston Martin in January after the firm was hit by a string of profit warnings that caused its share price to tumble. Aston Martin was trading at more than 545p when it joined the London market, but had fallen to just 49p at the start of 2020.

By 1030 BST on Thursday, the stock was trading 4% higher at 49.99p.