Toyota will Spend 500 Million Dollars on Re-Equipment of Factories in the U.S.

Toyota Motor Corp., Which benefits from excess production capacity in North America in a period when sales decline, will spend about 500 million dollars to re-equip a factory in Indiana, being the largest investment in 2009, reports Bloomberg .

Toyota has allocated 48.4 billion yen for the restructuring of the plant in Princeton, Indiana, of the total budget of 830 billion yen for fixed investment in factories owned worldwide in 2009.

The factory will build links Highlander SUV, sales of this model in the U.S. recording a decline of 41% in first half of 2009.

The budget for the reorganization of the Indiana plant is at least double compared to the 230 million dollars spent by Toyota in 2007 to add a production line model Camry sedan at its plant Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. of Indiana, owned by Subaru.

The investment of 500 million dollars in its plant in Indiana is designed to "re-equip production line Highlander and Sequoia models," said Mike Gross, spokesman for Division of Toyota manufacturing in North America.

The biggest Japanese car manufacturer announced in July 2008 that will produce the Highlander at the factory which manufactured Sequoia and Sienna models without providing further details.

Currently, all Highlander models sold in the U.S. are manufactured in Japan. Highlander production models at its plant in Indiana will begin at the end of this year, Toyota added.

Plant in Princeton, Indiana, opened in 1998 and has 4500 employees, according to Bloomberg.

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