Fate of NUMMI plant still uncertain

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, May 31, 2009 | by Steve Johnson

With both its corporate parents reeling from the global recession, the fate of the 25-year-old, pioneering New United Motor Manufacturing venture in Fremont remains shrouded in uncertainty.

The huge auto plant, a joint venture between General Motors and Toyota that produces hundreds of thousands of cars and trucks a year, says it has heard little from either company, even as GM prepares a likely bankruptcy filing today and Toyota comes off its worst year in more than half a century.

In late April, GM officials said that they would kill the Pontiac division, which could have a big effect on the plant, also known as NUMMI. Besides producing the Toyota Corolla and Tacoma pickup truck, NUMMI also makes the Pontiac Vibe.

GM CEO Fritz Henderson has previously said that he hopes his company will continue helping to make cars at NUMMI. However, GM officials did not return calls seeking an update on the plant's status. And in an e-mail to MediaNews, NUMMI spokesman Lance Tomasu said nothing definitive has been decided about the Fremont facility. NUMMI is a California corporation, and GM and Toyota each own half of its shares.

"Right now, we intend to continue with production as planned, which includes the Pontiac Vibe," Tomasu said. "At this point, it is unclear exactly how NUMMI might be affected by the GM bankruptcy."

Toyota's commitment to keeping NUMMI operating also remains unclear. That's because, like GM, the Japanese automaker has been ravaged by the recession. Due to declining sales, Toyota announced May 8 that it lost $7.7 billion in the fourth quarter and suffered its first annual loss since 1950. Moreover, Toyota executives predicted the next 12 months could prove even worse.

Toyota spokeswoman Zoe Zeigler was vague about the automaker's plans for the plant.

"It's a little too soon for us to have any detailed information on that right now," she said.

She also offered no assurances that NUMMI would stay open if the Vibe is discontinued and the Fremont plant gets no replacement vehicle to build.

"It's something we're monitoring to determine what the most appropriate steps would be if that did happen," she said. "With the economy changing every day, I think it would be a little too early to say what direction we would take."

The soured economy already has had a ripple effect at NUMMI. Because of Toyota's dwindling business, the company in January said it was shutting down the Corolla and Vibe production line for 12 days, and the Tacoma line for 16 days.

Fremont City Manager Fred Diaz could not be reached for comment. But a person in his office who asked not to be identified said that officials there have been told nothing specific about the future of NUMMI.

When it was created in 1984, replacing a shutdown GM plant, NUMMI revolutionized carmaking in the United States. The joint venture helped introduce just-in-time delivery of parts, an intense reliance on employee teamwork and other innovations that since have become commonplace in U.S. auto manufacturing.

If the 5.3 million-square-foot plant set on 380 acres beside Highway 880 was shut down, it would be a blow to the local economy. The factory -- which built the Chevrolet Nova as its first vehicle - - employs 5,440 people and does business with more than 1,000 suppliers in California, according to NUMMI's Web site.

Reach Steve Johnson at 408-920-5043 or sjohnson@mercurynews.com.NUMMI by the numbers-- Established: 1984-- Employees: 5,440-- Vehicles made: Three (Toyota Corolla, Toyota Tacoma and Pontiac Vibe)-- Annual vehicles production: 250,000 cars, 170,000 trucks-- Suppliers: 3,600 in North America, more than 1,000 in California-- Plant size: 5.3 million square feet

Source: NUMMI