Regarding the establishment of the first automobile assembly plant in North America for its subsidiary Magna Steyr, Magna CEO Don Walker still has options. Walker said that Steyr currently has no plans to build a plant in North America, but if there is sufficient customer support, it will consider building a plant in North America.
In an interview with American Automotive News, Walker revealed his views on the production of cars in North America, saying "We have received many requests, or a unique car, or a mass-produced car. I think if we are in Building an assembly plant in North America will reap a lot of business. "
Steyr is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Canadian parts giant Magna International and is unique in automotive manufacturing. Steyr is a foundry with a car assembly plant in Graz, Austria, which produces BMW 5 Series, Jaguar I-Pace, Jaguar E-Pace, and Mercedes-Benz G-Class cars. In June, Steyr stated that it would produce a redesigned BMW Z4, and it is expected that the Graz plant will have a capacity of 200,000 units this year.
Walker said that as Steyr continues to grow, its Graz plant capacity is gradually reaching its limit, so an assembly plant may need to be established in North America or elsewhere. In April this year, Steyr established a cooperative relationship with Chinese automaker BAIC to develop the next-generation electric vehicle architecture. Magna also partnered with ride-hailing platform Lyft to develop a new generation of self-driving cars.
Walker said, "As we continue to launch new cars, our business may exceed existing capacity in the next few years; if we want to continue the business of Magna Steyr, we will also need to expand to a second factory. One possibility of continued attention. North America could be the site of a new plant, and China could be. "
At the same time, Walker also said, "It takes a lot of money to build a brand new factory, and we need the commitment of two to three customers to build a factory. The biggest cost of the new factory is the paint shop, which must meet the specifications; logistics is also a problem." "We will consider all options, and if there are ready-made factories around, we will also consider them," Walker said.