Nissan is preparing to close one of its longest-running factories, marking a painful step for the automaker as it tries to climb out of the challenges plaguing it over the past several years. While the plant was on Nissan’s targeted closure list, it has been in operation since 1961 and employs more than 2,000 workers, making the move feel significant for the company.
Nissan CEO Ivan Espinosa said, “Today’s announcement marks a restructure that comes with significant pain. However, I firmly believe that carrying through with these actions is essential to overcoming the current situation and returning to a path of growth.” Espinosa said Nissan wasn’t planning to close or consolidate other Japanese facilities and noted that the automaker is still deciding whether to transfer employees to other parts of the company.
The Oppama plant was the first to build the Nissan Leaf and has a significant economic impact on the community surrounding it, so the closure will cause ripples beyond Nissan’s balance sheet. Nissan will cut a total of around 20,000 jobs globally and plans to reduce its manufacturing footprint from 17 factories to 10. While the company’s partnership with Honda fell through, Nissan may offer some of its excess manufacturing capacity to produce pickups for its Japanese rival, and Nissan will cancel other models, including the NV200 van, to further cut costs.
[Images: Nissan]
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