Photo: Toyota
Back in 2017, Japanese carmaker Toyota announced it will be investing a total of $10 billion in its U.S. operations by 2021. This week, the company upped the ante by adding an extra $3 billion to that plan.
The expanded investment is meant to support the start of production of the RAV4 Hybrid and Lexus ES 300h at the Georgetown facility in Kentucky, and to expand the engine production capacity in Huntsville, Alabama.
The number of hybrid transaxles produced in Buffalo, West Virginia, is set tol double, and the casting operations at the Bodine Aluminum’s Jackson facility in Tennessee will be expanded, as will the ones in Troy, Missouri.
“These latest investments represent even more examples of our long-term commitment to build where we sell,” said in a statement Jim Lentz, chief executive officer for Toyota Motor North America.
“By boosting our U.S. manufacturing footprint, we can better serve our customers and dealers and position our manufacturing plants for future success with more domestic capacity.”
Thanks to the planned investments in the five American states, Toyota will also need additional workforce: the carmaker says it will hire 586 people to fill in production roles.
The expansion of the production activities in the U.S. comes at a time when Toyota is fighting hard to remain the world’s top carmaker, in the face of Volkswagen’s continuous assault.
In 2018, Toyota sold 8.09 million vehicles, compared to the 6.74 million cars sold by the German rivals. However, these numbers reflect only the main brands of the two companies.
Taking into account all of Volkswagen’s owned brands, the number it sold as a group rises to 10.83 million, well above the Japanese.
In all, Toyota operates 10 manufacturing facilities in the States. Earlier this year it announced a joint venture with Mazda for the build of an additional facility, which will begin operations in 2021.
The number of hybrid transaxles produced in Buffalo, West Virginia, is set tol double, and the casting operations at the Bodine Aluminum’s Jackson facility in Tennessee will be expanded, as will the ones in Troy, Missouri.
“These latest investments represent even more examples of our long-term commitment to build where we sell,” said in a statement Jim Lentz, chief executive officer for Toyota Motor North America.
“By boosting our U.S. manufacturing footprint, we can better serve our customers and dealers and position our manufacturing plants for future success with more domestic capacity.”
Thanks to the planned investments in the five American states, Toyota will also need additional workforce: the carmaker says it will hire 586 people to fill in production roles.
The expansion of the production activities in the U.S. comes at a time when Toyota is fighting hard to remain the world’s top carmaker, in the face of Volkswagen’s continuous assault.
In 2018, Toyota sold 8.09 million vehicles, compared to the 6.74 million cars sold by the German rivals. However, these numbers reflect only the main brands of the two companies.
Taking into account all of Volkswagen’s owned brands, the number it sold as a group rises to 10.83 million, well above the Japanese.
In all, Toyota operates 10 manufacturing facilities in the States. Earlier this year it announced a joint venture with Mazda for the build of an additional facility, which will begin operations in 2021.
Google News