About 10 days ago, we reported that Nissan was on the verge of announcing the closure of its CIVAC (Ciudad Industrial del Valle de Cuernavaca) plant in Mexico.
The company has now confirmed it is going ahead with the shutdown, and that production of the pickup trucks currently assembled at CIVAC will move to its Aguascalientes plant, some 500 km away. Initially, reports suggested a closure by 2027, but Nissan now says it’s stopping operations at the first plant it ever opened in Mexico by March of 2026.
The automaker currently manufactures Navara and Frontier pickup trucks for South American markets at the plant.
“For over 60 years, Nissan Mexicana has built a strong and trusted relationship with its stakeholders in Mexico, earning global recognition as one of the company’s flagship operations,” stated Nissan CEO Ivan Espinosa.
He added that Nissan has “made the difficult but necessary decision, that will allow us to become more efficient, more competitive, and more sustainable. Throughout this transition, we remain deeply appreciative of the invaluable contributions made by our collaborators at the CIVAC plant. Their dedication over the years has been instrumental to our success. I take this opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to our employees, customers, and to Mexico, which remains a strategic pillar for our company.”
Chinese manufacturers like BYD (Build Your Dream) and SAIC (Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation) might be interested in the plant, as they are seeking production capabilities in North America to achieve their growth ambitions on this side of the globe.
Last week, Nissan announced the closure of its Oppama plant in Japan.
While this news is unfortunate, it was expected. The closures are part of a broader reduction in Nissan's global production, as sales have dropped by almost 40 percent since the pre-pandemic period.
Facing its largest financial loss in a quarter-century, Nissan plans to close seven assembly plants and reduce its capacity by nearly 30 percent, aiming for 2.5 million vehicles by fiscal year 2027, down from the current 3.5 million.
Nissan is also looking at closing plants in India, Argentina, Thailand and South Africa.