Seen joining hands are Ford ASEAN president David Alden (left), AutoAlliance Thailand president Kiyotaka Shobuda (centre) and Mazda Motor EVP Masaharu Yamaki (right).

AutoAlliance Thailand Co Ltd (AAT), the joint venture between Mazda Motor Corp and Ford Motor Co, today opened its US$500 million passenger car plant at an industrial estate in eastern province of Rayong.

The new production facility, located in the Eastern Seaboard Industrial Estate, is expected to increase the company’s current capacity from 175,000 to 275,000 units a year.

The new facility will be used for manufacturing Mazda2 and Ford Fiesta compact cars for Thai market and Southeast Asian countries, as well as Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. AAT already exports Ford and Mazda pickup trucks to more than 130 markets around the world.

David Alden, president of Ford ASEAN, said, “The completion of this investment underscores the significance of AAT for our regional operations and its strategic role as a global manufacturing and export hub. The ASEAN region is a critical component of our overall growth strategy in Asia, and the further diversification of products manufactured at AAT will be a fundamental driver of this growth.”

Masaharu Yamaki, executive vice president of Mazda Motor Corp, said, “The new passenger car plant at AutoAlliance Thailand will play an important role as a production base in Mazda’s global strategy. The new plant employs the industry’s latest flexible manufacturing technologies, ensuring world-class quality, safety and environmental friendliness.”

He said, “AAT continues to be a global success story in terms of the superb cooperation between Mazda, Ford and AAT employees who constantly strive to achieve a shared vision of success. I have every confidence this teamwork will enable us to overcome the current market challenges and lead us to further business growth.”

Kiyotaka Shobuda, president of AutoAlliance Thailand, meanwhile said, “The world-class passenger cars to be produced here will further solidify AAT’s continued role in both Ford and Mazda’s global strategy and support the further expansion and growth of Thailand’s auto industry and its leading role in the ASEAN region as a global automotive production hub.”

The investment in the new facility increases Ford and Mazda’s total joint investment in the AAT facility to more than US$1.5 billion since 1995 when Ford and Mazda became a strategic partner for investment and expansion in the Asia Pacific region by using Thailand as their global manufacturing hub.

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