From
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/green-is-the-new-black-as-cabs-go-electric-zsw09x0vs?shareToken=69253c87e03a17954a21109c3c08f 0e9

Extract:

Britain’s latest car plant — and the country’s first factory exclusively
building electric vehicles — is to open in Coventry in the spring as the
China-backed London Taxi Company rises from the ashes and begins production
on new battery-driven black cabs.

The new redesigned black cabs will go on sale by the end of the year as all
new taxis aiming to ply for trade in London will need to abide by strict
low-emissions rules from January 1, 2018.

LTC has been reborn from the buy-out by the Hangzhou-based Geely of London
Taxi International, which failed in the 2012 collapse of Manganese Bronze.
The factory, part of a $400 million project, will open its doors for the
first time on March 22.

The new plug-in hybrid electric cab — capable of running at least 70 miles
on a single electric charge but which will have a back-up petrol engine —
is aimed at replacing the 22,500-strong fleet of diesel cabs on the
capital’s roads.

…

The new vehicle’s success will in part depend on Transport for London and
other authorities honouring their commitments to putting in cab-dedicated,
fast-charging infrastructure. TfL has committed to installing 150 such
charging points by the end of next year.