SALTILLO, Coahuila (10/10/2013) - This Thursday, President Enrique Peña Nieto, accompanied by the Secretary of Economy, Ildefonso Guajardo, inaugurated the new Chrysler assembly plant that was built in 18 months to manufacture the new Ram ProMaster commercial vehicle and with which the automaker is positioned to improve its participation in domestic production and sales as well as in exports of vehicles manufactured in Mexico.
He also said that Chrysler will join the large-scale production of a new engine at its Ramos Arizpe plant in the same state. With both projects whose investment is 1,249 million dollars (mdd) and which will generate 1,570 new jobs, the assembly plant "consolidates the cluster of one of the most dynamic global value chains in our country," said the head of the Ministry of Economy (SE), Ildefonso Guajardo.
He pointed out that "this automotive company was Mexico's fourth largest producer and exporter of light vehicles in 2012; it manufactured 455 thousand units and exported 424 thousand of them to 40 countries in America, Asia, Africa and Europe".
Since Chrysler settled in Mexico, he said, back in 1938 until today, there has been a fundamental strategic alliance between the Mexican government and Chrysler.
He assured that the automaker, like the others located in our country, "has found in Mexico the human capital that has complemented its strengths, achieving that in addition to the traditional processes of stamping, assembly and engine manufacturing in its plants in Coahuila and the State of Mexico, it also has an automotive engineering center in Mexico City with global reach".
For his part, Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne, recalling that in 2013, the automaker celebrates 75 years in Mexico, acknowledged that it has been a long road in which the country plays a fundamental role for the company and where, he said, we have become the third largest exporter.
He added that the investments announced will have a positive effect on strengthening the supplier base and other businesses and increasing the country's competitiveness in the global context.
"We made investments of 10.4 billion dollars last year, a total that is expected to reach 14 billion soon; I believe that the relationship we have with Mexico is special not only for the economic side, but for the way in which this relationship has been created, and above all for the long history of successes and challenges that have helped us grow together," he said.
In this context, the executive announced a new investment for a new engine production line (2.0L and 2.4L Tigershark), which will be assembled at the North Engine Plant along with the iconic HEMI V8 engines. This, he said, will strengthen Mexico's role as a strategic platform for the automaker.
We will invest an additional 164 million dollars (mdd) and we have already discussed the contracting process for this new line," he said.
In turn, Ildefonso Guajardo said that of Mexico's total exports, "this sector is responsible for 25% of what we export to the world, employing more than 600 thousand workers; in 2013 the automotive industry exported 55 billion dollars in exports.
"Undoubtedly, a company that has had a relevant participation in recent investment flows, as well as in the origin, development and consolidation of the automotive industry, has been Chrysler", the same company that will export the Ram ProMaster to the United States and Canada. It will also be sold in Mexico.
Source: Vanguardia Industrial