Yazaki North America to Establish Pilot Project Factory in Guatemala

Guatemala City, June 1, 2022 – Automotive components producer Yazaki North America, Inc. (Yazaki NA) today announced a pilot project factory is being built in western Guatemala along the Mexican border in Ayutla, a municipality in the San Marcos Department of Guatemala. Yazaki will invest nearly US$10 million in the pilot project factory, which is expected to start production by January 2023, creating up to 1,000 jobs.

Ryosuke Yazaki, President & CEO of Yazaki NA, a subsidiary of Yazaki Corporation in Japan, said, “As Guatemala's first automotive parts manufacturer and a company already operating in El Salvador, we will grow together with the community while contributing to it through our business.”

This pilot project factory is the first of several facilities Yazaki intends to build as part of its offshoring-to-nearshoring process that will bring overseas jobs to Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) countries. Yazaki supplies most automakers, including many in the emerging electric mobility sector. The company is also expanding its telematics and energy systems business portfolio.

Yazaki’s announcement comes in the wake of the Call to Action Vice President Harris, issued in May 2021 for businesses and social enterprises to deepen their investment in northern Central America. Yazaki NA recognizes the support of both the United States Government, through the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Guatemalan Government, through its Ministry of Economy, in making this investment project a reality.

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