Toyota To Build Engine Factory In Poland

By Agence France-Presse Toyota Motor Corp. said on Oct. 16 that it would build a 170-million-euro ($167 million) diesel engine factory in southwestern Poland, part of a plan to build "its biggest base for car parts in Europe." Announcing its second investment in Poland, Toyota said it would build the two-liter diesel engine factory at Jelcz, 15 miles from Wroclaw in Lower Silesia. The factory, to begin operations in early 2005, will eventually produce 120,000 two-liter diesel engines annually and will employ 350 people. "Our ambition is to cover the needs of the European diesel engine market, which is in constant expansion," said Tokuichi Uranichi, executive director of Toyota. He said the new plant, combined with its car-parts factory in Walbrzych in the same region of Poland, would create "its biggest base for car parts in Europe." The engines that will be built at the Jelcz factory will be used mainly in Toyota's Corolla cars produced in Britain and also Avensis cars in Turkey. Asked whether Toyota planned to export the Polish-made engines outside Europe, Toyota officials said there were no plans to export to the United States, where demand remains very weak for that type of engine. Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2002