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Read our policy By 2019-03-06T10:01:00+00:00 Japanese carmaker Honda has begun operations at its Itirapina assembly plant Production is starting with the Fit model but over the next three years the company will transfer production of other models from its Brazilian plant in Sumare The Sumare plant will then concentrate on powertrain production which involves a development cost of around 1 billion reais ($266m) will make production more efficient with a reduced environmental footprint which has been making cars in Brazil for more than 20 years said the new plant featured an assembly line with new painting technologies various automated equipment and new welding and stamping technologies that enabled shorter processes The economic slowdown in Brazil that started in 2013 saw car production there drop from 3.6m units to 2.1m by 2016 but the county is now showing signs of recovery Production recovered to around 2.8m units last year and passenger car sales grew by 12% Honda announced the shake-up in its Brazilian operations in April last year the company said: “The automobile business environment in Brazil has undergone significant changes in recent years The market is now showing signs of gradual recovery.” Itirapina is more than three times the size of Sumare but it will have the same production capacity of 120,000 units/year and a workforce of around 2,000 when restructuring is complete – down by around 1,200 staff Honda said it recognised the need to strengthen its business structure based on the present market and make a shift towards a more sustainable business Last month, Honda announced a restructuring of its global manufacturing network to accelerate its commitment to electrified cars “in response to the unprecedented changes in the global automotive industry” and focus activity in regions where it expected to have high production volumes the company plans to close its Swindon plant in the UK in 2021 at the end of the current production lifecycle of the Civic hatchback and type R models as well as winding down operations in Turkey ending production of the Civic sedan in 2021 But the company intends to continue business operations in Turkey and said it would hold talks with stakeholders over the next three years Site powered by Webvision Cloud Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu; Editing by Kylie Madry Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab , opens new tab Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts. , opens new tabScreen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks. © 2025 Reuters. All rights reserved News Release the Honda automobile production and sales subsidiary in Brazil today began operation at its new automobile plant in the city of Itirapina in the state of São Paulo a plan to restructure its automobile production operations to strengthen the foundation of its automobile business HAB began operation at its new automobile production plant today with the Honda Fit the first model produced at the plant HAB will sequentially transfer production of other models from the existing Sumare Plant in the city of Sumare in the state of São Paulo and the restructuring is scheduled to be completed in 2021 Striving to realize highly efficient production with a reduced environmental footprint the new plant features a production line equipped with Honda’s latest production technologies including highly-functional painting technologies new welding and stamping technologies which enable shorter processes and other automated technologies that are most appropriate for this plant With over 20 years of automobile production in Brazil Honda will further solidify the foundation of its business in the region with the new auto plant which will change its key role to powertrain production and continue delivering high-quality and attractive products to Honda customers in the region Honda has decided to defer the start of production at its new manufacturing plant in Itirapina 190km/118miles northwest of São Paulo City Plant construction has ended and it was supposed to be opened in coming days but plans have been postponed due to market lows likely to extend to 2016 In a typically cautious Japanese move 190km/118miles northwest of São Paulo City Plant construction has ended and it was supposed to be opened in coming days but plans have been postponed due to market lows likely to extend to 2016 Honda was the only one to show growth (15% to October) thanks to the success of its new HR-V crossover currently works two shifts currently overtime daily and on some Saturdays Itirapina now will start production by 2017 and Honda may not meet all demand for its four models (Fit Yet it has chosen not to hire workers who might be idled Neither Honda nor Toyota have moved to three shifts here Last week Ford and GM ended third shifts at their Camaçari (northeast region) and Gravataí (down south) assembly plants Honda said all planned investments in Brazil would continue including the launch of the next generation Civic with new 1.5-litre turbocharged engine by mid-2016 and its local tech centre expansion Early November Chery admitted to be 90% idle in 2015 It will produce just 5,000 units of the Celer at the Jacareí Greater São Paulo manufacturing plant opened in the last quarter of 2014 In 2016 it will launch the new QQ subcompact and Tiggo compact SUV Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis The Chinese brand plans to produce between 7,000 and 10,000 units in total next year while the plant has capacity of 50,000 vehicles Nominations are now open for the prestigious Just Auto Excellence Awards - one of the industry's most recognised programmes celebrating innovation This is your chance to showcase your achievements Don't miss the opportunity to be honoured among the best - submit your nomination today Give your business an edge with our leading industry insights View all newsletters from across the GlobalData Media network By clicking here, you agree to our Terms and Conditions and consent to us collection your details for the purposes of your enquiry The German automaker will invest 2 billion reais ($595 million) to construct the T-Cross at its Sao Jose dos Pinhais plant in Brazil This move is just part of a wider 7 billion reais ($2.1 billion) investment through 2020 to refresh its line-up in Brazil Volkswagen’s calls it the “largest product launch offensive ever” in its local history Despite Volkswagen’s belief in the Brazilian market, Honda isn’t so convinced and says it will consolidate all vehicle production in its Itirapina plant. This will include converting a factory in the Brazilian city of Sumaré from vehicles to engines and parts, Reuters reports Honda intended on its Itirapina plant helping it to double production capacity in Brazil in the midst of booming domestic production a press officer confirmed that the downtrun in the country altered with these plans When it launches, the VW T-Cross will use the company’s MQB platform, also used by the Polo. As such, the compact SUV will share some parts with the Polo and Seat Arona and act as a direct rival to the Nissan Juke and Peugeot 2008. It will slot below the T-Roc in Volkswagen’s range of SUVs Sales of the T-Cross are tipped to start by the end of the year Get our news on your inbox! Suscribe x MercoPress, en Español Montevideo, May 5th 2025 - 11:24 UTC Japanese automaker Honda plans to build a new assembly plant in the Brazilian state of Sao Paulo with an annual capacity of 120,000 units will become operational in 2015 and will double Honda's annual output capacity in Brazil to 240,000 units The Japanese auto giant is currently producing 120,000 units a year at its existing plant in the city of Sumare is to churn out Fit-class compact vehicles which are in high demand on the world market “As the world's fourth largest automobile market Brazil is a very important market for Honda's operations in South America,” said Masahiro Takedagawa Investment to a country that is outside of the EU who would have believed it possible Commenting for this story is now closed.If you have a Facebook account, become a fan and comment on our Facebook Page President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva hosted a meeting this Friday (19) The Vice president and Minister of Development President Lula listened to Ichinose’s presentation about the history of Honda’s presence in Brazil The company started operating in the country over 50 years ago and maintains a motorcycle factory in Manaus (AM) that has manufactured over 30 million units; vehicle production centers in Sumaré and Itirapina (SP) Honda has invested over BRL 9 billion in Brazil in the automotive sector alone Ichinose highlighted the company’s commitment to completing its transition to renewable energies by 2050 and that it sees ethanol technology as a factor that converges with its decarbonization policy The businessman added that a new hybrid-flex SUV model will be produced in Brazil to be launched in 2025 NEW CYCLE - Ichinose announced to President Lula Honda’s new investment cycle in Brazil: BRL 4.2 billion between 2024 and 2030 concentrated on introducing the new hybrid vehicles technology and developing a chain of key supplies for these models The company expects these investments to generate 1,700 new direct and over 3,500 indirect jobs The Itirapina plant is due to start a second production shift next Monday (22) President Lula welcomed Honda’s new investments in Brazil He commented on the development brought by the automotive industry and the role of the government in promoting a good environment for investments with legal He highlighted the need for companies to offer lower cost models to tend to the large potential market conformed by the Brazilian middle class He also pointed out that the average income of Brazilians increased by 11.5% in 2023 (IBGE data) Lula also spoke of the great capacity for exporting vehicles produced in Brazil to other countries in Latin America He underscored Brazil’s commitment to decarbonizing the economy through the production of alternative and renewable energies “Energy transition is an extraordinary opportunity in Brazil and Honda will contribute to this process” 130 BILLION - President Lula and Vice president Alckmin signed the celebratory plaque marking Honda’s new cycle of investments in Brazil Alckmin gave a quick interview to the press and celebrated the moment for the automotive sector in the country Honda is growing from 80 thousand to 100 thousand vehicles We are talking about a production increase of practically 25%” offering financing funds with guarantees for exportation we are now close to BRL 130 billion already confirmed in the automotive industry alone” MOVER - Honda’s representative in Brazil highlighted that the investments announced by the company were motivated by the Federal Government’s Green Mobility and Innovation program (Mover) designed to promote the expansion of investments in energy efficiency The program includes minimum recycling requirements for vehicle manufacturing and charges less taxes from companies that pollute less instating the Green Tax for Industrialized Products (IPI Verde) we saw the need to define our investments clearly