Toyota Motor Corp. announced on Jan. 18 that Toyota Motor Thailand Co. Ltd, its automobile production and sales company in Thailand, will construct a new vehicle production plant due to increased demand.
With an investment of approximately 16.9 billion yen (US$219 million) the new plant, Gateway Plant No. 2, is scheduled to start operations in mid-2013.
It will have an annual production capacity of approximately 70,000 units. This, in addition to Gateway plant No. 1, will result in a combined annual production capacity of 290,000 units at the two Gateway plants.
In addition, through an additional investment of approximately 2.9 billion yen (US$37 million), Thai Auto Works Co. Ltd will resume production - temporarily halted since the end of May 2010 -- at the end of 2012 with an annual production capacity of approximately 20,000 units.
The above developments will see a total of approximately 19.8 billion yen (US$257 million) in additional investment in Thailand and an increase of Toyota's total annual production capacity in the country to 760,000 units by mid-2013.
In its Toyota Global Vision, the company has positioned emerging markets as a top priority. By 2015 Toyota expects to have 50% of their sales from emerging markets.
This year, Toyota will celebrate 50 years of business in Thailand.
