Mr Bruno Ferrari, minister of economy of Mexico in representation of Mexico's President Mr Filipe Calderón, was the guest of honor at a ceremony held recently to mark the beginning of construction of a new vehicle production facility jointly owned by Mazda Motor Corporation and Sumitomo Corporation.

The JV facility is named Mazda Motor Manufacturing de Mexico SA de CV and is located in the city of Salamanca, in the state of Guanajuato.

The ceremony was hosted by the Mazda Motor Corporation's representative director and chairman of the board, president & CEO, Mr Takashi Yamanouchi, and Sumitomo's EVP Mr Kazuo Ohmori, on the site where the plant will be built.

Attending dignitaries included the Guanajuato state governor, Mr Juan Manuel Oliva, the mayor of Salamanca, Antonio Ramírez, General Director Promexico, Carlos Guzman, President of the Economic Commission of the State Congress, Alejandro Rangel, and Japan's ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to Mexico, Shuichiro Megata. In total, approximately 400 people attended the ceremony.

Mr Yamanouchi president of Mazda said that "Since Mazda established its sales network in Mexico six years ago, we have experienced a remarkable acceptance from the people of Mexico. Last year Mazda sold over 25,000 vehicles and captured over three percent market share. We are excited to be constructing this new facility here in Mexico with our partner Sumitomo Corporation. It will be vital to bolstering our expansion in Central and South America."

Mr Ohmori EVP of Sumitomo said that "The state of Guanajuato and the Sumitomo Group have a lot in common. Both were established over 400 years ago and developed through a history of mining. We also share the value of respect for people and the desire to contribute to society and grow together with our partners. By integrating our strengths with those of our strategic partner Mazda Motor Corporation, and those of Mexico and of Japan, I believe our joint venture will grow to become world class, and will help us to contribute to the development of both countries."

Through the new manufacturing facility, Mazda and Sumitomo intend to combine their individual strengths in order to enhance both companies' business in the rapidly growing Central and South American markets. The new facility will include both vehicle and engine assembly plants and will commence operations in the fiscal year ending March 2014 with an annual production capacity of 140,000 units. It will produce Mazda2 (Mazda Demio in Japan) and Mazda3 (Mazda Axela in Japan) models.