Mazda plans to build a small-car plant in Thailand in a joint effort with shareholder Ford, a Japanese business daily said on Friday.

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Citing the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Agence France Presse (AFP) said Mazda also plans to bring a factory of its own on-stream in North America.


Demand for the fuel-efficient Japanese models has been growing in the United States and Europe because of high petrol prices. By boosting output capacity, Mazda is set to play a key role in the Ford group’s small-car operations, the reports said.


According to AFP, the newspaper said Japan’s fifth-largest automaker and Ford plan to spend more than JPY50bn ($US424m) combined to build the Thai plant, which they hope will begin operations in 2009.


The factory is to roll out some 200,000 vehicles per year, including the 1.3-litre Demio [Mazda 2 for export], which is scheduled for a full redesign next spring, it said.

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Because the partners are considering manufacturing transmissions there as well, overall investment may balloon to about JPY100bn, the paper said, according to AFP.


The newspaper also said that the platform for the remodelled Demio is slated to be used in Ford small cars, so the new Thai plant will become a key facility for the Ford group’s small-car business.


Ford already has a joint venture plant with Mazda in Thailand that is a production hub for one-tonne pickups sold by both automakers worldwide outside North America. They also share an Illinois factory that builds the Mazda 6 line for North America.


AFP cited the Nihon Keizai Shimbun as saying Mazda is considering building a new plant on its own, possibly in Mexico, with the aim of bringing the factory onstream before 2015.