BRASILIA (Reuters) – Japanese automaker. Honda (NYSE:) will invest 4.2 billion reais ($807.74 million) in its Itirapine plant in Brazil by 2030, an executive said Friday, adding that the company aims to develop a hybrid vehicle in the South American country.
Honda’s announcement is the latest in a series of new investments from automakers such as Volkswagen (ETR:), General Motors (NYSE:), Stellantis (NYSE:) and Toyota (NYSE:) in Brazil.
According to the Brazilian government, investments promised by the country’s automakers in the coming years already amount to almost 130 billion reais.
Roberto Akiyama, commercial vice president of Honda Brazil, said the company’s investments will focus on new technologies and the development of a hybrid model for the Brazilian market that can run 100% on ethanol.
The company, he told reporters, plans to produce up to 150,000 vehicles a year at the Itirapine plant by 2030, up from 100,000 this year, for both domestic sales and exports.
In addition to the yet-to-be-developed hybrid vehicle, Honda also plans to launch a new entry-level SUV in the Brazilian market in 2025, Akiyama said.
His remarks followed a meeting with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in Brasilia.
($1 = 5.1997 reais)