Audi Picks Mexico over U.S. for New Audi Manufacturing Plant [2]
Audi has recently announced plans to build an auto plant in Mexico in order to boost its sales to two million units/year by 2020. The plant, which is expected to start producing Audi SUV models in 2016, will be the third plant in Mexico built by parent company Volkswagen. The Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG, Rupert Stadler, explained the decision for Audi to invest nearly $2 billion in Mexico instead of the U.S., “As an established car-making location, Mexico offers an excellent economic basis for Audi production operations.”
As many global car manufacturers have come to realize, Mexico is one of the world’s top ten automotive manufacturing locations due to its long experience in the industry. For those consumers concerned about the quality of the vehicles made abroad, Audi has confirmed that manufacturing in Mexico will not harm its luxury brand status, with Peter Schwarzenbauer, Member of the Board of Management for Marketing and Sales for Audi AG going on to explain, “It will be possible to supply customers worldwide with cars built in Mexico to Audi’s renowned standard of quality.” Schwarzenbauer added: “In launching production operations in Mexico, Audi will enhance its own competitiveness and move significantly closer to its sales target of two million units per year by 2020.”
Emphasizing the importance of an international presence ‘for international success’, Stadler, AUDI AG’s Chairman of the Board of Management, shed light on Audi’s latest strategic move, stating, “Good infrastructure, competitive cost structures and existing free trade agreements played a significant role in the choice of Mexico. This trailblazing move will help us safeguard our position on the world market. Our German locations, too, stand to benefit from it.”