Nissan on Thursday (3 July) announced the opening of its second production plant in Thailand.
The new factory will be a production hub for the NP300 Navara, the automaker’s latest redesign of its top selling pickup truck, destined for export to 45 countries around the world.
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The outgoing Navara was built on an OEM basis for Nissan by Mitsubishi Motor’s Laem Chabang factory in Thailand which also builds MMC’s Navara rival, the L200/Triton/Strada line.
Nissan said Thailand was a key market and an integral part of its growth strategy in Asia. The country now has two assembly plants and an R&D facility, and is increasing in importance as the company’s Asian hub for exports and manufacturing.
Nissan spent THB3.7bn on the 580,000sq m plant which will create around 2,000 new jobs when full capacity of 150,000 units a year is reached.
“Thailand is the engine of growth for us in the region, so we’re excited to be opening this second plant today that will produce our latest pickup”, said Fumiaki Matsumoto, Nissan’s global manufacturing chief.
“It signifies our optimism for Thailand, as a growing automotive market, a centre of manufacturing excellence for the region and an export hub for the world.”
More than half of the vehicles produced will be exported – pickup trucks account for a large percentage of new vehicle sales in Thailand, hence the relatively high proportion of production for the domestic market (UK exports 80% of vehicles produced).
Local content is already 85%, including the engine plant.
Nissan has also spent THB162m on the plant’s zero discharge programme, and will recycle all industrial wastewater through the reverse osmosis process. The automaker said it would continue to provide training to subcontractors and employees to raise the awareness of waste management and resource reduction.
Nissan first produced cars in Thailand in 1963 at a rate of four a day. The new plant will increase its production capacity in Thailand to 370,000 units.
“The NP300 Navara is our most durable pickup, integrating the best of our technological know-how, design skills and 80 years of pickup production experience. With features such as LED projector headlamps with daytime running lights and the new 2.5L YD [diesel] engine, I am confident this is going to be a popular model and will be our growth pillar in the region,” said Takao Katagiri, Nissan’s head of Asia, Oceania and Japan business.
The plant produced its first NP300 Navara pickup on 1 July and dealers opened order books today ahead of first deliveries in August. Two versions are available in Thailand (all with the 2.5-litre diesel and manual or automatic transmission): King Cab and Double Cab. The price of the King Cab ranges from THB575,000-THB842,000 (US$17,700-$26,000) while the Double Cab costs THB656,000 – THB996,000 ($20,200-$30,700).
