Mazda has already built 100,000 vehicles at its new plant in Mexico, 11 months after production began in January 2014. The 100,000th car built by Mazda de Mexico Vehicle Operation (MMVO) was a Mazda2 for the European market.
The plant also builds the Mazda3 compact hatchback and sedan. “The production of one hundred thousand vehicles at MMVO is extremely significant, and we could not have done it without the support of our customers, our suppliers, and our employees, as well as that of the federal and local governments,” said MMVO President and CEO Keishi Egawa at a commemorative ceremony held on site.
“We see this achievement as a milestone on our road towards achieving our mission of making MMVO one of the most important strategic locations in Mazda’s global manufacturing footprint,” the executive added.
Mazda’s Mexican plant has an estimated annual production capacity of 140,000 units, but the Japanese automaker has plans to increase output to 230,000 units by March 2016. The increase is in part due to the 50,000 Toyota-branded subcompact vehicles based on the Mazda2 that the automaker will build in Mexico.
The Toyota vehicles will be built under contract, beginning in the summer of 2015.
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