Toyota Motor Corp. recently announced plans to invest $373.8 million in the United States by 2020. The funds will be used to implement Toyota’s New Global Architecture at its Alabama plant and to begin the manufacture of its first American-made hybrid powertrain at five plants.
The Buffalo, West Virginia, manufacturing facility will add hybrid-vehicle transmissions production. The Georgetown, Kentucky, plant will expand its 2.5-liter engine capacity while the Troy, Mo., plant will increase 2.5-liter cylinder heads production. The Jackson, Tenn., plant will accommodate production of hybrid transaxle cases and housings and 2.5-liter engine blocks. The Huntsville, Ala., plant will be upgraded to build engines compliant with the New Global Architecture.
“This investment is part of our long-term commitment to build more vehicles and components in the markets in which we sell them,” Jim Lentz, CEO of Toyota Motor North America, said. “This strategy is designed to better serve our customers and dealers, and positions our manufacturing operations to fulfill their needs well into the future.”
In January, Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda announced the company’s commitment to invest $10 billion in the United States. With this month’s investment, the company is $4.1 billion closer to its goal.
Toyota has sold 3 million hybrids in the country and 10 million worldwide.