Toyota to build diesel engines in Poland

TOKYO, Sept 22, 2002 Reuters is reporting that Toyota Motor Corp is planning to build a new factory in Poland to produce cheaper diesel engines for mid-sized saloons built in Britain, the financial daily Nihon Keizai Shimbun said on Sunday.

The plant will be built by a joint venture to be established with Toyota Industries Corp , the paper said.

Due to come on stream in 2005, the factory will cost an estimated 15-20 billion yen ($124 million) and have an annual output of 200,000 units, the Nikkei said.

The engines, with a capacity of two to 2.4 litres, will be used in the Avensis and Corolla sedans, the paper said. Diesel engines for the Avensis are currently produced by Toyota Industries in Japan, but Toyota Motor believes it can cut costs by switching production to Poland, the article said.

The move is part of a strategy aimed at increasing Toyota's sales in Europe, the paper said. Engines from the Polish plant may be exported to countries other than Britain in the future.