Toyota to produce new electric vehicle in Europe

Reuters

Japanese automaker Toyota announced on Wednesday that it will manufacture its new battery electric vehicle (BEV) at its plant in Kolín, Czechia — the company’s first all-electric model to be produced in Europe.

Toyota plans to invest about €680 million ($783.9 million) in the facility, expanding it from 152,000 to 173,000 square metres. The upgrade will include new paint and welding shops, as well as facilities for vehicle and battery production.

Currently, the factory produces around 220,000 Aygo X and Yaris Hybrid models annually. With the addition of BEV production, Toyota will broaden its output capacity and boost local employment.

The Kolín site has been part of Toyota’s European production network for more than two decades. Since opening in 2002 with Aygo production, it has manufactured over 4.5 million vehicles. Toyota took full ownership of the facility in 2021, which today employs around 3,200 people.

“For Toyota, this decision signals a further roll-out of its multi-pathway strategy designed to achieve its objective of carbon neutral operations in Europe by 2040,” the company said in its statement.

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