Why is Nissan closing its Oppama plant, and what comes next?
Question: I heard Nissan is reducing the number of car factories it operates in Japan. Is that true?
Answer: Yes, that's correct. Nissan has decided to close its Oppama plant in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture -- where it began making cars in 1961 -- at the end of fiscal 2027, shifting production to its factory in Kanda, Fukuoka Prefecture. The Oppama plant produced iconic models like the Bluebird and now the Leaf electric vehicle (EV).
Q: Why is the plant being closed?
A: Recently, Nissan has struggled to develop new models that sell well, and sales have stagnated in major markets like the United States and China. As a result, the company's performance has declined, and in fiscal 2024, it posted a net loss of 670.8 billion yen (approx. $4.54 billion) -- its third-largest ever. To address this, Nissan plans to consolidate its global manufacturing network from 17 plants to 10 by fiscal 2027, cutting about 20,000 jobs, or roughly 15% of its workforce. Production at the Shonan plant in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, will also end in fiscal 2026.
Q: What will happen to the Oppama site after the closure?
A: Nissan will keep its research center and test course there to continue developing new technologies. The company aims to minimize the impact on the roughly 2,400 plant workers by transferring them to other factories or departments. However, since Oppama has long been known as "Nissan town," the loss of so many jobs is expected to negatively affect the local economy. Yokosuka's mayor and residents are worried about the town's future.
Q: How does Nissan plan to recover from this?
A: President Ivan Espinosa says the company needs painful reforms centered on plant restructuring to achieve renewed growth. Nissan is also seeking new partners to help drive its recovery, and is in talks with several companies. In the electric vehicle sector, Nissan is collaborating with Honda Motor Co. and Mitsubishi Motors Corp. on technology development, and is also considering working with Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. (Foxconn). Many fans are hoping for the day when "Nissan, the company of technology," will make a strong comeback.
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The Mainichi
4 days ago
- The Mainichi
Why is Nissan closing its Oppama plant, and what comes next?
The Mainichi Shimbun answers some common questions readers may have about Nissan Motor Co.'s planned closure of a major car factory in Japan, and what's next for the troubled company. Question: I heard Nissan is reducing the number of car factories it operates in Japan. Is that true? Answer: Yes, that's correct. Nissan has decided to close its Oppama plant in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture -- where it began making cars in 1961 -- at the end of fiscal 2027, shifting production to its factory in Kanda, Fukuoka Prefecture. The Oppama plant produced iconic models like the Bluebird and now the Leaf electric vehicle (EV). Q: Why is the plant being closed? A: Recently, Nissan has struggled to develop new models that sell well, and sales have stagnated in major markets like the United States and China. As a result, the company's performance has declined, and in fiscal 2024, it posted a net loss of 670.8 billion yen (approx. $4.54 billion) -- its third-largest ever. To address this, Nissan plans to consolidate its global manufacturing network from 17 plants to 10 by fiscal 2027, cutting about 20,000 jobs, or roughly 15% of its workforce. Production at the Shonan plant in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, will also end in fiscal 2026. Q: What will happen to the Oppama site after the closure? A: Nissan will keep its research center and test course there to continue developing new technologies. The company aims to minimize the impact on the roughly 2,400 plant workers by transferring them to other factories or departments. However, since Oppama has long been known as "Nissan town," the loss of so many jobs is expected to negatively affect the local economy. Yokosuka's mayor and residents are worried about the town's future. Q: How does Nissan plan to recover from this? A: President Ivan Espinosa says the company needs painful reforms centered on plant restructuring to achieve renewed growth. Nissan is also seeking new partners to help drive its recovery, and is in talks with several companies. In the electric vehicle sector, Nissan is collaborating with Honda Motor Co. and Mitsubishi Motors Corp. on technology development, and is also considering working with Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. (Foxconn). Many fans are hoping for the day when "Nissan, the company of technology," will make a strong comeback.
Tokyo Reported
6 days ago
- Tokyo Reported
Carlos Ghosn speaks on Japan's ‘corrupt' justice system and his daring escape
Former Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn sits down with journalist Hiroshi Sukagawa in Beirut, Lebanon to discuss Japan's 'corrupt' justice system and his escape. A summarized version is below. Interviewer (Sukagawa): Thank you for joining us today. Beirut's weather is quite pleasant compared to Japan. Carlos Ghosn: Yes, about 30°C — nothing compared to Japan's heat. Much more comfortable here. Interviewer: We're not here for a personal profile, but to examine in depth what happened on the day of your escape from Japan, and your views on Nissan. You're known as the legendary CEO who turned Nissan from billions in debt into a profitable company. How do you view Nissan today, and how do you respond to being called a fugitive and the drama of your escape? Ghosn: Many questions there. Let's start with November 2018. My arrest was planned. It's absurd for the head of a major global company, also representing a major French corporation, to be arrested over unreported compensation—amounts neither decided, paid, nor finalized. In normal corporate governance, issues are handled internally with prosecutors, correcting problems without damaging the company. Hurting Nissan damages Japan—its employees, shareholders, and reputation. Even former Prime Minister Abe said I shouldn't have been involved in this. The board could have dealt with it internally, but they couldn't remove me via the board or shareholders, so they used legal means. If a CEO is suspected of abusing systems, the proper course is to suspend them. But here, the aim was to completely neutralize me, remove me from the system, and eliminate the risk that Nissan might fall under Renault and the French government's influence. Anyone can see the charges were not the real reason for my arrest. After my arrest I investigated and found it was orchestrated. Prosecutors in Japan have a 99.4 percent conviction rate, not because of plea deals, but because they coerce confessions. Once indicted, it's essentially over—lawyers and judges are irrelevant. They pressured me: confess and things will be easier; we won't go after your wife, children, or friends. That's recorded, but the tapes are withheld 'for containing sensitive information.' The system is corrupt. They split charges to extend detention — 21 days for one charge, then another 21 days for new charges, threatening more if I didn't confess. I never confessed, so they re-arrested me. International pressure finally forced them to grant bail—at $15 million, the highest in Japan. Yet I was under extreme restrictions, surveilled by cameras Nissan paid for, which was likely illegal. This convinced me I'd never get a fair trial. Staying meant 10–15 years in legal limbo, possibly re-arrested. At 64, that meant dying in that process. So I planned my escape—something prosecutors would never expect, as no one had done it before. For a year, prosecutors controlled the narrative: 'Ghosn is greedy, loves money, committed major crimes.' I couldn't speak to any media. When I reached Lebanon, I was free to respond. People call me a fugitive; I say I fled injustice. I'm not hiding—everyone knows where I live — but Japan issued Interpol notices for me and my wife, on absurd charges, purely to pressure me. Interviewer: You've said there were 'rotten apples' inside Nissan. Why did they want you out? Ghosn: They feared that if I finalized the holding company structure for Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi, it would cement the alliance and prevent Japan from ever undoing it. I opposed a full merger—politicians liked it, but I preferred a fair holding company with no single controlling party. The French government wanted a merger, which worried some in Japan. Removing me was the way to collapse the alliance—which indeed happened. Now Nissan and Mitsubishi are in trouble. They even tried talks with Honda, which I predicted would fail—no synergies. Both have the same strengths and weaknesses; mergers work when they're complementary. Renault's then-chairman, Jean-Dominique Senard, failed in his role. He sat on Nissan's board, knew the issues, approved budgets, and oversaw decisions that led to seven plant closures, including Oppama. Poor leadership caused job losses and a 70 percent drop in Nissan's value—from over 1,000 yen per share to about 300 yen. Interviewer: Japanese authorities say arrests are only made with strong evidence. Ghosn: Nonsense. I was arrested on one charge (unreported compensation) without a finalized or paid amount. Other charges came after raids. This was about neutralizing me and dismantling the alliance. France reverted to its pre-1999 position in the auto industry, with Nissan and Mitsubishi weakened and withdrawing from markets. Japanese prosecutors even staged events for TV — claiming to arrest me on the plane, which was false since it was at the airport). They also showed boxes taken from my home post-escape as if they contained incriminating documents, which they didn't. I destroyed any documents they could twist into accusations—not because I was guilty, but because I knew their malice. Japan's hostage justice system is medieval; long interrogations without counsel, 'monitored' interpreters, recordings kept only by prosecutors, no fairness. Interviewer: Did France also act against you? Ghosn: Yes, after Japan requested it. In France, a mere complaint freezes assets automatically as a 'precaution.' This has dragged on for five years without real progress—France is following Japan's lead. Interviewer: About the Versailles controversy— Ghosn: It wasn't my wedding; it was our 10th anniversary, and part of the Renault-Nissan alliance's 15th anniversary celebrations, attended by 250 guests, paid by the alliance, not by public funds. Two weeks later we held a similar event in Japan. The narrative was manipulated while I couldn't speak. Interviewer: Let's discuss the escape plan. Ghosn: I decided to escape 3–4 months earlier, after realizing a fair trial was impossible. I tested multiple methods before settling on the instrument case plan. It was year-end; airport staff were temporary and less alert. My advantage was no one expected me to try. I avoided using my monitored phone—used unmonitored ones and spoke under running showers to mask sound. I disguised myself in jeans, cheap coat, casual shoes, cheap watch, glasses—things I never wore normally. In December, masks and hats weren't suspicious. I stayed silent to avoid voice recognition. The box was brought to an airport hotel, not my house. I walked there, entered naturally, then in the room entered the case. It was about 1.5 hours inside before boarding. I emerged only after takeoff. From Kansai Airport to Turkey, then quickly transferred in bad weather to a flight to Beirut. Landing in Lebanon at dawn felt like a rebirth. Interviewer: What was the first thing you did after getting out of the case? Ghosn: Drank coffee and water—needed to calm down. Then to my wife's mother's house; she cried when she saw me. Interviewer: You've since been Red Notice-listed. Ghosn: Interpol is just a tool, following any member state's request. But there's always a way around obstacles. Interviewer: What do you do now? Ghosn: I teach crisis management, leadership, and strategy at a private university here—sharing real experience, not theory. I also support lawsuits against Japan's hostage justice system. Interviewer: Will you return to Japan to stand trial? Ghosn: Never, unless the system changes completely and the damage done to me is recognized. In France I'm fighting the charges; if I win there, Japan's case will look absurd. Final message to Japan: For a year after my arrest, the public only heard the prosecutors' version, supported by Nissan and the Ministry of Economy. Even if I had done something wrong, the way they handled it was wrong. In reality, I did nothing wrong—this was a setup, prepared for months. Look at Nissan today—factories closed, communities hurt, thousands losing jobs. Would this have happened if I were still leading? That's my question to you.
NHK
08-08-2025
- NHK
US tariffs bite into Japanese carmakers' operating profits in April-June quarter
Business results announced by six Japanese automakers for the April-June quarter show that US tariffs trimmed their operating profits by a combined 783 billion yen, or around 5.31 billion dollars. The administration of US President Donald Trump started imposing a 25-percent additional tariff on vehicles from all countries and territories in April. That hiked the US duty on Japanese passenger cars to 27.5 percent. The import levy shaved Toyota Motor's operating profit by some 3.05 billion dollars, Honda Motor's by roughly 846 million dollars, and Mazda Motor's by about 473 million dollars. The operating profit of Nissan Motor was pared by around 466 million dollars, Subaru's by approximately 377 million dollars, and Mitsubishi Motors' by about 97.8 million dollars. Meanwhile, some carmakers also disclosed to what extent a 15-percent US tariff on vehicles and auto parts is expected to affect their full-year operating profits for fiscal 2025, which ends in March next year. Toyota predicts a contraction of about 9.51 billion dollars, while Honda estimates a shrinkage of roughly 3.05 billion dollars. Japan and the US agreed on the 15-percent duty rate in their tariff negotiations. But it remains unclear when the US will implement that. A growing number of officials in Japan's automobile industry are expressing concerns that the 15-percent tariff will generate significant burdens. Analysts say automakers now have to tackle challenges, including whether to raise prices of their vehicles sold in the US, and how to cut production costs.
