TOKYO: Nissan Motor Co said on Tuesday it will stop producing vehicles at its Oppama plant in Japan by March 2028 and transfer operations to its factory in the southern prefecture of Fukuoka as part of a global restructuring plan to reduce capacity.

Japan’s third-biggest automaker is looking to slash production capacity to 2.5 million vehicles from 3.5 million and consolidate production sites to 10 from 17 as it grapples with falling sales and mounting losses.

Reuters reported last week that Nissan was in talks to allow Taiwan’s Foxconn to use the Oppama factory to produce EVs and avert a closure.

Nissan said in a statement on Tuesday that it would explore “a wide range of options” for the future use of the Oppama plant, in the port city of Yokosuka, south of Tokyo. Related costs will be disclosed along with first-quarter financial results, it said.

CEO Ivan Espinosa has announced sweeping restructuring plans aimed at turning around the struggling automaker, including reducing its global workforce by some 15%.

When the Oppama factory first opened in 1961, it was one of Japan’s first large-scale auto factories and a symbol of Nissan’s – and Japan’s – global ambitions. 

Reuters