BMW Group has broken ground for a new factory in Brazil. It is located in Araquari, Santa Catarina, and officials attending included Michel Temer, the Vice President of the Federative Republic of Brazil, Raimundo Colombo, Governor of Santa Catarina and Ludwig Willisch, Head of Region Americas, BMW Group.
This is the first BMW Group automotive plant in South America, Ludwig Willisch explained during the event, calling it ‘a further milestone in the BMW Group’s long-term growth strategy. Brazil has one of the world’s fastest growing major economies and is a market with tremendous potential for the future.’
Harald Krüger, Member of the Management Board of BMW AG, responsible for Production, commented in Munich: ‘Today, we are laying the cornerstone for the BMW Group’s first automotive plant in South America. The new plant in Brazil will be an important element in our international production network and will make a significant contribution to the BMW Group’s profitable and globally balanced growth."
By adding a new plant in Brazil, the BMW Group is further expanding the global production network, which will in future comprise 29 production and assembly sites in 13 countries on four continents. The start of operations at the new plant is scheduled for the fall of 2014. The factory will include a body shop, a paint shop and an assembly facility.
Over the course of the next few years, more than 200,000,000 euros will be invested in the plant, with production of up to 30,000 vehicles annually. The production portfolio is expected to comprise the following models: MINI Countryman, BMW 1 Series 5-door model, BMW 3 Series Sedan, BMW X1, and BMW X3. The setup of the new site will entail approx. 1,300 new jobs and 60 new employees are already on board.
The BMW Group production site is located in Araquari, a town in the southern Brazilian state of Santa Catarina. This allows the BMW Group to draw on the structures established in Joinville, about 20 kilometers north of the new plant. At Joinville’s Perini Businesspark, BMW is setting up a training center for the new plant. —Paul Duchene
