Suzuki plans to introduce a petrol-electric hybrid vehicle in Japan, the United States and Europe as clean-air regulations are expected to be toughened in the major markets, Suzuki President Hiroshi Tsuda was quoted as saying on Friday.
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But he declined to reveal when Suzuki would put the environment-friendly vehicle on the markets, merely saying the company intends to release it ”as soon as possible”, Kyodo News reported.
In an interview with the news agency, Tsuda also said the vehicle will adopt a hybrid system Suzuki plans to develop jointly with General Motors, which reduced its stake in Suzuki from 20% to 3% in March 2006 as part of its efforts to secure financial resources for corporate restructuring, with Suzuki buying back the 17% of its own shares for JPY230bn.
Tsuda reportedly said Suzuki will keep the repurchased shares on hand, denying that it will sell them to automakers other than GM.
Despite the sharp drop in GM’s stake in Suzuki, the relationship between the two companies dating back to 1981 will ”remain unchanged” because of their ”long history of alliance,” Tsuda told Kyodo News.
