The third instalment of Toyota’s State of the Motor Industry (SOMI) address took place last week in Kyalami, north of Johannesburg. One of the key highlights was Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM) announcement that it is investing a cumulative amount of R4, 28 billion between 2019 and 2021 which will straddle across different divisions, including parts distribution at Atlas Warehouse in Johannesburg as well as various manufacturing projects at the Prospecton Plant in Durban.
Read on further below for highlights on other key announcements by Toyota.
The Lion’s Share
Toyota has announced that a staggering R2,43 billion, has been earmarked for the production of a new passenger-car model at Prospecton from October 2021. The new passenger model will replace the Corolla (not Quest) production line, which is due to end in 2020. TSAM is also proud to announce that this includes, for the first time on the African continent, the production of a Toyota Hybrid Synergy Drive vehicle as a variant.
Job Creation
The investment will generate an additional R2,85 billion towards the South African economy per annum and approximately 1 500 new jobs. It is of particular importance to note that this investment would not have been possible without industrial policy certainty in the form of APDP-2.
Where Is The Rest Of The Money Going?
Other pockets of investment include substantial enhancements to the local production of Hiace Ses’fikile (R450 million) as well as its production volume increase (R91 million) from 14 000 to 18 000 units per annum (culminating in 270 new jobs), and the establishment of a packing plant to support TSAM’s knock down business of Hilux in Kenya (R20 million).
TSAM is also investing R365 million to double the size of its Atlas Warehouse from 40 000m² to 80 000m². When completed in 2021, the facility will be the largest automotive parts warehouse in the Southern Hemisphere. The organisation also has a number of ongoing projects between 2019 and 2020, including an investment into the new Corolla Quest and several facilities upgrades at the plant, that come to a total of R928m.
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