MONTGOMERY, Ala., Jan. 10, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Alabama
Governor Kay Ivey and Huntsville Mayor Tommy
Battle joined Mazda (MZDAF) and Toyota (NYSE: TM) leaders
today to announce the automakers have selected Huntsville, Alabama as the site of their new
joint-venture manufacturing plant.
The new plant will have the capacity to build 300,000 vehicles
annually, with production split evenly between two lines for each
company to produce Mazda's crossover model that will be newly
introduced to the North American market and the Toyota Corolla.
The joint venture represents a $1.6
billion investment that Mazda and Toyota plan to make with
equal funding contributions. The site for the new plant is in
Huntsville, located approximately
14 miles from Toyota's Alabama
plant (Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Alabama, Inc.). The facility is expected to
create up to 4,000 jobs. Production is expected to begin by
2021.
"The partnership between Mazda and Toyota will expand innovative
automotive manufacturing in Alabama," Governor Ivey said. "Their decision
to locate this new facility in Huntsville is a testament to the talented
workforce in our state. We are proud that this partnership puts
Alabama on the forefront of
technology in this dynamic global industry."
"With this announcement, our world changes overnight," said
Tommy Battle, mayor of Huntsville. "Mazda and Toyota, two of the
world's most innovative automakers, have created a legacy project
that will provide jobs for decades to come for Huntsville and Alabama. It vaults Alabama to the top as an industry leader in
producing the next generation of cars that will power our
nation."
Mazda Motor Corporation President and Chief Executive Officer
Masamichi Kogai and Toyota Motor
Corporation President Akio Toyoda
joined Gov. Ivey and Mayor Battle for the announcement.
For Mazda, the plant comes on line in a significant year that
will mark the start of the company's second century of operation
and second half-century of sales in the U.S. The automaker is
enhancing its commitment to the U.S. market and will focus efforts
on manufacturing and increasing sales in the country.
"Mazda makes cars with a clear vision of how we want to inspire
people, contribute to society and help preserve the beauty of the
earth. By making such cars here in Alabama, we hope that over time our plant will
come to occupy a special place in the hearts of our employees and
the local community. By making this plant a vibrant part of that
community, we hope to work, learn and grow together with the people
of Alabama and Huntsville," Kogai said.
For Toyota, this joint-venture plant will be its 11th
U.S. manufacturing facility and represents its continued commitment
in the U.S., in addition to the $10 billion
dollar investment over the next 5 years that was announced
in January 2017.
"Our investment to establish a new vehicle assembly plant with
Mazda builds on the strong success we have enjoyed in Alabama where we produce engines for the North
American market," Toyoda said. "Starting from 2021, I'm confident
that we will run a highly competitive plant, by bringing together
the expertise of Toyota and Mazda as well as the excellent
Alabama workforce. We are
committed to being another 'best-in town' company in the city of
Huntsville and the state of
Alabama, a new hometown for Toyota
and Mazda."
The State of Alabama is the
fifth largest producer of cars and light trucks nationally with a
strong automotive manufacturing presence including Toyota's engine
plant in Huntsville, where Toyota
employs 1,400 team members. With more than 150 Tier 1 and 2
automotive suppliers in the state as well as automakers, there are
approximately 57,000 automotive manufacturing jobs in Alabama.
In the coming months, after obtaining approvals and
authorization by antitrust agencies, the new joint venture will be
established, and site preparations will begin with the start of
production in 2021.
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in the
U.S. and North America for 60
years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation
mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands. During that time,
Toyota has created a tremendous value chain as our teams have
contributed to world-class design, engineering, and assembly of
more than 33 million cars and trucks in North America, where we operate 14
manufacturing plants (10 in the U.S.) and directly employ more than
46,000 people (more than 36,000 in the U.S.). Our 1,800 North
American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.) sold more than 2.6
million cars and trucks (2.4 million in the U.S.) in 2017 – and
about 85 percent of all Toyota vehicles sold over the past 15 years
are still on the road today.
Toyota partners with community, civic, academic, and
governmental organizations to address our society's most pressing
mobility challenges. We share company resources and extensive
know-how to support non-profits to help expand their ability to
assist more people move more places. For more information about
Toyota, visit www.toyotanewsroom.com.
About Mazda
Mazda Motor Corporation, based in Hiroshima, Japan, was established in 1920, and
became a vehicle manufacturer in 1931, when it began producing
three-wheeled trucks. Mazda began selling vehicles in North America 50 years ago, this year, with
the establishment of affiliate companies in Canada (Mazda
Canada, Inc.) in 1968, in the
United States (Mazda Motor of America, d/b/a Mazda North
American Operations) in 1970, and in Mexico (Mazda Motor de Mexico) in 2006. Currently, Mazda does
business in more than 130 countries around the world, and produces
vehicles in Japan, Mexico, China
and Thailand. Building passenger
cars, commercial vehicles, and crossover SUVs, with an emphasis on
the driving experience and a focus on design, engineering and
efficient manufacturing, the company sells more than 1.55 million
vehicles annually.
Mazda Motor Corporation is responsible for Mazda's operations on
a global basis, including all aspects of manufacturing, research
and development, sales, marketing and all international operations.
Mazda North American Operations is headquartered in Irvine, California, and oversees the sales,
marketing, parts and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in
the United States and Mexico through nearly 600 dealers. Operations
in Mexico are managed by Mazda
Motor de Mexico in Mexico City. For more information on Mazda,
including photography and B-roll, please visit the online Mazda
media center at InsideMazda.MazdaUSA.com/Newsroom.
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SOURCE Mazda