Toyota resurrects plan to build 5th engine plant in Miyagi

Japan’s Toyota Motor Corp. has decided to resurrect a plan from 2008 to build a fifth engine plant in the central Miyagi town of Taiwa. The original plan was dropped following the global financial crisis that year which resulted in a sharp drop in vehicle demand. The new plant, if built according to the original plans will have annual production capacity of 400,000 units and would provide products to the company’s assembly plants in Miyagi and Iwate. The company is reportedly seeking to establish a third major engine supply base in the Tohoku region, in addition to the ones in the central and southwestern regions of Japan. In addition to the new engine plant, Toyota announced that it will merge three of its manufacturing subsidiaries in the Tohoku region. In the region, Toyota intends to make a hybrid vehicle that will be one size smaller than the Prius. Toyota is said to be planning to launch 10 brand-new and fully remodeled hybrid models by the end of next year. (July 16, 2011)