National Assembly Chairman Uong Chu Luu, Special Adviser to the Japanese Cabinet Isao Iijima, and leaders of a number of ministries, agencies and localities also attended the event.
PM Phuc gave an order to kick-start the construction of the 12 trillion VND (528 million USD) plant at an investment promotion conference in Quang Nam province in 2017.
After one year, the first phase of the project was completed with half of the designed capacity of 100,000 units per year.
Covering an area of 30.3ha at the Chu Lai Open Economic Zone, the plant is equipped with cutting-edge technologies, meeting global standards of Japan’s Mazda Group.
Also on March 25, Thaco inaugurated the international shipping route linking Chu Lai and Japan, and welcomed the first vessel transporting automobile spare parts and equipment from Japan’s Hiroshima prefecture to the Chu Lai Port in order to serve Thaco Mazda factory’s production.
Tran Ba Duong, Thaco Chairman, said the group plans to build another wharf and has invested 600 billion VND (USD) in expanding the arterial road from the Chu Lai Port to Da Nang-Quang Ngai Expressway, and building a double-decker roundabout interchange between National Highway 1A, the North-South railway, and the arterial road.
PM Phuc said the event marks the development of not only Thaco but also Quang Nam province.
He lauded cooperation between Mazda and Thaco over the past time, saying the collaboration has contributed to the Vietnam-Japan relationship.
Vietnam encourages the development of the auto industry, he said, adding that the Government will devise policies to ensure equality between locally-made automobiles and imported ones.
The leader asked Thaco to roll out a specific plan to operate the plant effectively and safely, meeting demands of both domestic and foreign markets.
He also called on Japan’s Mazda Group to continue transfer technologies to Thaco, especially the production of components, and support the company in completing the second phase of the project as scheduled.
