Toyota, Mazda select Alabama for $1.6 billion plant

Alabama will be the site of a new $1.6 billion Toyota Motor Corp. and Mazda Motor Corp. auto plant, Toyota said Wednesday.The plant, which will employ up to 4,000 people and produce about 300,000 vehicles a year, will be located in the Huntsville region and is a boon for the state, where Toyota has a large engine plant and an existing network of automotive suppliers."Together, I am confident we will create yet another 'Built in America' success story," Toyota President Akio Toyoda said.The plant is expected to launch production in 2021. Toyota said the site for the new plant is about 14 miles from Toyota’s Alabama engine plant (Toyota Motor Manufacturing Alabama Inc.).“The partnership between Mazda and Toyota will expand innovative automotive manufacturing in Alabama,” Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said in a statement. “Their decision to locate this new facility in Huntsville is a testament to the talented workforce in our state. We are proud that this partnership puts Alabama on the forefront of technology in this dynamic global industry."In a statement, Mazda CEO Masamichi Kogai said: "Mazda makes cars with a clear vision of how we want to inspire people, contribute to society and help preserve the beauty of the earth. By making such cars here in Alabama, we hope that over time our plant will come to occupy a special place in the hearts of our employees and the local community."The new plant -- in a state Trump won by 28 points in 2016 -- could be a political boost to the Republican president, who has urged automakers to build plants in the United States and add jobs.Trump tweeted in March he wanted "new plants to be built here for cars sold here."The announcement also comes at a time of declining U.S. auto industry sales, so it could exacerbate overcapacity and add pressure to cut prices. U.S. new vehicle sales fell 2 percent in 2017, after hitting an all-time record high in 2016, and are expected to fall further in 2018.In recent months, the companies had narrowed their choices down to sites in Alabama and North Carolina.North America accounted for about a quarter of Toyota’s total vehicle sales in 2017, and about 36 percent of revenue.Mazda, which gets a third of its revenue from North America, currently imports all of the models it sells in the U.S. It plans to produce crossovers alongside Toyota Corolla compact cars at the joint plant. Trump criticism

Toyota, Mazda select Alabama for $1.6 billion plant

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