BICESTER, UK — British electric van manufacturer Arrival, which has recently won a major order from logistics giant UPS, has taken on a new production site here.

Link 9 Bicester is a major new distribution and production development, located a short distance from Junction 9 of the M40. The new manufacturing facility includes 120,600 square feet of floor space.

Arrival is creating the world’s first second generation electric vehicle, using innovative technologies to create affordable, purpose-built electric vehicles for commercial customers.

It has tested prototypes with a wide range of companies including Royal Mail, DHL and DPD, as well as BT. Arrival also received an investment and order of 10,000 vehicles from UPS.

The company has secured an £90 million investment from Hyundai and Kia which will be used by Arrival to fund the next stage of its development.

The £3 billion valuation means Arrival has achieved ‘unicorn’ status, a new company valued at more than $1billion.

The business now occupies offices in London as well as research and development centers in Banbury, the USA, Germany, Russia, Netherlands and Israel. It also plans to build “micro factories” near Los Angeles and New York.

The company is expanding its UK and global workforce from 600 people in September to 800 and will ramp up production over 2020. Arrival’s automotive micro factory manufacturing plant at Link 9 Bicester will likely be operational in 2021.

“Arrival is revolutionizing electric vehicles with our Generation 2 solution that means customers can buy a purpose built electric vehicle for the same price or less than a petrol or diesel equivalent,” says Glenn Saint, chief of commercial vehicles of Arrival. “Critical to making this possible is manufacturing in micro factories which can serve the local community and respond rapidly to local demand.”