Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. is spending an initial P400 million to boost plant capacity and car parts production in the first few months of 2016, as it moves closer to registering with the Comprehensive Automotive Resurgence Strategy program.
Newly-appointed Toyota Philippines president Satoru Suzuki said Toyota Japan had given the Philippine unit the go-signal to register under CARS.
“We at Toyota Japan have spent so much time to comply with the requirement for CARS. CARS requires additional parts localization so we have to meet their requirement and that needs investment so we are willing to invest a lot of money. Now, we can say we are ready to apply,” he told reporters Thursday during an appreciation event at the Marriott Hotel in Pasay City.
The local unit committed to meet the requirements of the incentives program under CARS. New investments are required for big plastic parts such as door trimmings, bumpers, instrument panel and console mat to improve local assembly and generate the volume needed for the local and export markets.
Under the program, each registered participant must produce 200,000 units of a single model of passenger car.
Toyota in 2015 produced 49,000 completely-knocked down units. It plans to increase local production by 10 percent to an estimated 53,900 units.
The company aims to sell 150,000 units in both CKD and CBU packs, up 20 percent from 125,000 in 2015.
The company will market the same line-up this year, including the all-new Toyota Fortuner, Vios, Innova, Corolla Altis, Wigo, Yarris, Land Cruiser, RAV 4, Avanza, Alphard, Previa, Hiace, Hilux and the premier sedan Camry.
Toyota vice president for corporate affairs and Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. president Rommel Gutierrez said vehicle sales were expected to increase 10 percent to 14 percent to 370,000 units in 2016.
Total automotive sales in 2015 reached 323,000 units, exceeded forecast by 3,000.
Toyota aims to corner at least 40 percent share of the market for CKD and CBU units in 2016, slightly above 38 percent in 2015.