Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda has pledged an investment of 55 billion baht (RM7.2 billion) into Thailand for the expansion of its hybrid vehicle production operations, the Bangkok Post has reported.
This investment would involve the retooling of Toyota’s production lines in the country, in order to support production of both internal combustion engines as well as battery-electric motors for use in hybrid vehicles, Thai industry minister Akanat Promphan said.
This investment will also enable the creation of jobs, technology transfer and workforce development, the minister said, following last week’s meeting between Toyoda and the prime minister of Thailand, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Bangkok Post reported.
Citing Thai government spokespersons, Bangkok Post said that the prime minister of Thailand reaffirmed the government’s readiness to align its policies to the needs of the automotive industry, through the balancing of interests of both manufacturers and consumers in order to achieve mutually beneficial economic benefits.
The Thai prime minister also emphasised the government’s commitment to supporting investment as well as fostering confidence in Japanese manufacturing in Thailand.
Toyota had been criticised for slowing the progress of EV development, as the Japanese manufacturer has been a strong proponent of taking the multi-pathway approach to carbon neutrality. Its stance of holding firm with hybrids appears to be paying off, however; out of its record 10.3 million vehicles sold last year, Toyota sold 3.5 million hybrids, up 31% from the previous year, according to Bloomberg.
The latest Thailand-built hybrid product from Toyota that is sold in Malaysia is the latest, XV80-generation Toyota Camry, which was launched in Malaysia early this month at RM248,800. Even more recently, this has been joined by the purely-ICE Camry 2.5V, which gets the A25A-FKS 2.5 litre naturally-aspirated inline-four that outputs 204 PS and 246 Nm of torque.
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