The company is headed by Dr Qu Li, who was revealed in a Government report released last month to have had a personal relationship with one of the Phoenix Four while working as a consultant for ill-fated MG Rover. Dr Li received £1.6 million for consultancy services to the Rover group in the 15 months before the firm collapsed.

LDV administrator PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) said it had secured the deal after nine weeks of ‘intensive’ negotiations and was hopeful that the sale would complete within the next month. Any hopes that production would be resumed at the Birmingham-based firm's site at Washwood Heath were quashed by PwC, however, saying the new owner intended to relocate the assets.

Eco Concept said it wanted to launch a new company making specialist light commercial vehicles, but a spokesman said the Washwood Heath site was not suitable for its planned smaller scale production operation. It is aiming to recruit around 200 workers for the operation at a new site in the West Midlands.

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