General Motors is spending US$445m to build a diesel engine plant and upgrade an existing vehicle assembly plant in Rayong, Thailand, chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner announced there on Wednesday (13 August).
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The new 14,492 sq m (156,000 sq ft) facility will be the automaker’s first diesel engine plant in southeast Asia and will make four-cylinder motors for use by Chevrolet in Thailand as well as for other brands and global markets.
Construction began today with the ceremonial pouring of the facility’s first cement pillar during an event attended by 400 guests, including the US ambassador to Thailand and government representatives from Thailand and other neighbouring ASEAN nations.
The investment also includes engineering development work and retooling at Rayong to build the next-generation Chevrolet Colorado small pickup truck, which is sold in Thailand and exported around the world. The plant also builds Holden and Isuzu Rodeo-badged variants.
The engine plant, scheduled to begin production in 2010, initially will employ 340 workers to manufacture about 100,000 2.5- and 2.8-litre turbodiesel engines annually – one of the first applications will be the redesigned Colorado.
The new ‘clean diesel’ engines were designed and developed jointly by GM and Italy’s VM Motori – in which GM purchased a 50% equity stake to form a joint venture with Penske Corporation of the US.
“This plant is an example of how we are proactively pursuing two key aspects of GM’s global strategy,” Wagoner said. “The first is the accelerated application of alternative fuels and propulsion systems to reduce global dependency on fossil fuels. The second is growth in the emerging markets, including the ASEAN region, as a key factor in our continued global leadership.
“Diesel engines play a very important role in GM’s global advanced propulsion strategy. We are leveraging expertise and resources within our company and through our technology partnerships to ensure we develop the world’s best engines. This investment will also support manufacturing and grow advanced propulsion technology capability in Thailand and across Asia Pacific.”
Steve Carlisle, executive director of GM ASEAN, and president and managing director of GM Thailand, added: “The new facility will be a state-of-the-art, highly flexible and people-focused production complex that incorporates GM’s leading manufacturing strategies. We are bringing the best GM has to offer to ensure that our customers receive the cleanest and most efficient diesel engine technology available. Add to this our work with CNG, cellulosic ethanol, bio-diesel and regular gasoline, and it is clear that General Motors is quickly becoming the energy diversity vehicle manufacturer in Thailand.”
The diesel engine plant is adjacent to the Rayong vehicle assembly plant, which opened in 2000 and employs more than 2,000 workers who currently build the Chevrolet Aveo, Optra, estate and Captiva alongside the current Colorado trucks.
