DOZENS of jobs have been saved in the region after a car parts manufacturer was bought out of administration.

The UK group of Arlington Automotive counts JLR, Ford and Nissan amongst its customer base and employs around 600 people across sites including Newton Aycliffe.

In May, coronavirus compounded existing financial issues and the company called in the administrators putting jobs at risk.

However, workers are celebrating after international automotive supplier Ricor Global acquired the assets of Arlington Automotive’s Newton Aycliffe site.

Ricor has acquired the North-East division, based on Aycliffe Business Park, and will trade as Ricor North East from its existing facility, with 60 existing jobs saved initially.

Ricor executive chairman David Johanson said: “We are very pleased to have completed this deal. It enhances our relationship with a number of existing customers and provides the opportunity to grow with new OEM’s and Tier one customers.

“We are gaining a highly capable and experienced team which will be a great asset to the Ricor Group. We also are thrilled to continue to create additional job opportunities in the United Kingdom.”

The venture has been supported by an invoice finance facility from HSBCUK.

Heather Griffin, HSBC UK relationship director, said: “We have worked with the team at Ricor for a number of years so were pleased to be able to support the business with the facility to enable the acquisition of Arlington Automotive’s Newton Aycliffe site.

“The acquisition maintains jobs and will provide additional crucial investment into manufacturing in the North East while strengthening Ricor’s position as a leading automotive supplier.”

The acquisition will allow the Ricor Group to continue to develop and diversify to meet the demands of customers across the industry and around the world.

Ricor has also confirmed there are plans to develop the Aycliffe site which should create additional job opportunities.

Jimmy Saunders, from administrators Duff and Phelps, said: “We are delighted that we have been able to secure the future of the business in what is a challenging time for the UK economy. We wish the team success.”