MEXICO CITY — BMW plans to spend $1 billion to build a plant in San Luis Potosi, Mexico, with capacity of about 150,000 units per year, the company said today.

Start of production is planned for 2019, with a work force of about 1,500 employees, said Harald Krueger, BMW board member for production, in a statement. BMW did not disclose what models it will build at the plant.

Krueger said the new plant, combined with BMW’s plant in Spartanburg, S.C., underscores BMW’s commitment to the North American Free Trade Agreement region — Mexico, Canada and the United States.

“The Americas are among the most important growth markets for the BMW Group,” he said. “We are continuing our strategy of ‘production follows the market.’”

BMW’s announcement comes on the heels of last week’s announcement that, in a joint venture, Renault-Nissan and Daimler will build a $1.36 billion plant in Aguascalientes, Mexico, to build compact vehicles for their Infiniti and Mercedes-Benz brands.

BMW made its announcement here at the residence of Mexico president, Enrique Peña Nieto. He attended the ceremony along with Secretary of Economy Ildefonso Guajardo Villarreal and the governor of San Luis Potosi state, Fernando Toranzo Fernández.

BMW said Mexico’s “large number of international free trade agreements — within the NAFTA area, with the European Union and the MERCOSUR [South American trade bloc] member states, for example — was a decisive factor in the choice of location.”

The automaker also cited the quality of the work force, a supplier network that BMW already sources parts from, and infrastructure. Krueger said BMW has “already reached initial agreement with worker representatives in San Luis Potosi.”

BMW already has more than 100 suppliers in Mexico, Krueger said, and that number has doubled over the last four years. There will be more supplier opportunities in the future, he said.

Andreas Klugescheid, corporate and government affairs head of communications for BMW’s production network, told Automotive News that supply sourcing in Mexico in 2013 totaled $1.61 billion dollars.

MEXICO CITY, April 24, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (NASDAQ: GT) today announced it will build a new tire factory in San Luis Potosi, Mexico to serve its customers in the Americas. Goodyear Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Richard J. Kramer made the announcement here today at a ceremony with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto.

The new factory, combined with investments in its existing U.S. and Canadian factories, will enable Goodyear to meet the strong and growing market demand for high-value-added (HVA) consumer tires in North America and Latin America. Industry demand for HVA tires in these regions is expected to increase by 10 million tires per year from 2014-19.

“This is an important investment in Goodyear’s future,” said Kramer. “Our new factory will provide us with a world-class manufacturing asset and will be a strong complement to our existing plants in North America and Latin America. The new plant advances our strategy to serve the needs of our customers and is consistent with our focus on investing in high return projects that drive profitable growth.”

The new factory, to begin production in mid-2017, will be Goodyear’s most technologically advanced and have a capacity of about six million tires per year. When it reaches full production, the factory will employ about 1,000 people.

Goodyear’s selection of San Luis Potosi follows an extensive review of potential locations throughout the Americas. The review took into consideration factors including cost structure, logistics, infrastructure, skilled workforce, tariffs and quality-of-life issues.

“San Luis Potosi is an ideal location for the new factory. Its central geographic location will enable us to support our valued customers and consumers throughout North America, Mexico and Latin America,” said Kramer.

The new factory will reflect Goodyear’s commitment to the environment. It will be a zero-waste-to-landfill and zero-solvent facility, and it will use natural gas, energy efficient LED lighting and state-of-the-art dust collection equipment.

Total capital investment for the project will be approximately $500 million to $550 million, net of government incentives, and is consistent with the company’s existing capital allocation plan. Its outlook for 2015 and 2016 capital expenditures remains unchanged at
$1.1 billion and $1.2 billion to $1.3 billion, respectively.