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Lotus set to stay in Norfolk

ESPNF1 Staff
October 25, 2010 « Button not ready to help Hamilton | »
Lotus will build a wind tunnel at its Hingham base © Sutton Images
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Lotus has announced it will soon start building a wind tunnel at its current UK headquarters in Hingham.

The news would seem to end team owner and boss Tony Fernandes' earlier plans to move the team to his home country of Malaysia. Lotus Racing also revealed that it is expanding its current UK factory to accommodate its new GP2 team AirAsia.

"Today's announcement ... gives us the facility we need to lay the foundations for long-term success," said technical chief Mike Gascoyne.

Over the weekend it also emerged that Lotus had finally signed a contract to secure a Renault engine supply for next year. It has been an open secret that the new Malaysian team is switching from Cosworth to Renault, but the naming dispute with Proton was believed to have held up the formalities.

But, whatever the current status of the dispute with Group Lotus, it seems the contracts were at last signed in the new Yeongam paddock late on Saturday.

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