Mazda is planning to begin mass production of its SKYACTIV-D 1.5-litre diesel engine at its new transmission plant in Thailand during the final quarter of 2015, according to a company press release. The new transmission manufacturing subsidiary, Mazda Powertrain Manufacturing (Thailand) Company Limited (MPMT), located in Chonburi prefecture, was officially inaugurated today (7 August). Masamichi Kogai, Mazda's representative director and CEO, said, "With the start of operations at MPMT, Thailand becomes the first production base outside Japan where Mazda is able to conduct comprehensive vehicle manufacturing, including production of engines and transmissions and vehicle assembly."
Significance: Mazda first revealed its intention to build a new transmission plant in Thailand in early 2013 and confirmed an investment of JPY26 billion (USD208.4 million) in mid-2013. The automaker began production of its SKYACTIV-DRIVE automatic transmission at MPMT during January this year. Mazda has been actively introducing its new-generation SKYACTIV technologies in its latest range of vehicles and expects sales of such models to account for more than 85% of its total global sales in fiscal year 2015/16. Mazda has high-growth plans for Thailand and the production of transmissions locally is seen as a strategic step to keep down manufacturing costs while at the same time taking advantage of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) free-trade agreement (AFTA) to supply transmissions to other markets in the region. IHS Automotive light-vehicle powertrain forecasts indicate that total output at Mazda's new transmission plant in Thailand is likely to hit 72,913 units this year, and we see this rising to more than 109,200 units in 2016.
