Toyota Motor celebrates 30 years of production at its engine plant in Deeside, Wales. For the occasion, an event was organized with many guests, who were able to see an exhibition of its operations and its vision of progress towards carbon neutrality in production in the years to come.

The Chief Minister for Wales, Mark Drakeford, and the Undersecretary of State for Wales, David TC Davies, together with Matt Harrison, President and CEO of Toyota Motor Europe (TME), were joined by different representatives from local authorities, organizations and companies, suppliers and community representatives for the celebration, including planting a cherry tree for the anniversary.

TMMUK Deeside started operations in September 1990, initially to supply engines to Toyota’s new plant in Burnaston, Derbyshire, England. The two facilities established Toyota’s first wholly-owned manufacturing operation in Europe, although the company’s production in Europe began much earlier, in 1971 under Salvador Caetano in Portugal (further information).

Since the distant 1990s, Deeside’s activities have expanded and adopted new technologies, to date benefiting from an investment of 360 million pounds sterling —more than 410 million euros at today’s exchange rates—. OROne of its major milestones came in 2010 as it became Toyota’s first hybrid-electric powertrain manufacturing location outside of Japan.

Today it directly employs over 600 people and supports more jobs in its local and national supplier network. Low emission gasoline and electric hybrid engines are produced both for TMMUK Burnaston and for export to Toyota production sites around the world, including Turkey and South Africa.

As part of the ongoing development of its highly efficient electrified powertrain, Deeside is now starting production of its fifth-generation hybrid-electric technology engine. This year will build more than 250,000 machines, bringing the historical total to more than five million.

Its production profile reflects Toyota’s multi-technology approach to decarbonizing mobility, a strategy that includes hybrid electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids, battery electrics and fuel cell electric vehicles. This suite of electrification solutions helps accelerate carbon emission reductions while ensuring that customer needs are met.