Swedish heavy-duty truck manufacturer Volvo announced that it will begin construction of its new $700 million plant to manufacture heavy trucks in the northern city of Ciénega de Flores, in the Mexican state of Nuevo León, on October 15.
“Save the date - Volvo Group invites you to attend a groundbreaking ceremony at our new heavy duty truck assembly plant in Monterrey, Mexico,” the company informed some media outlets in Mexico.
On August 26, the company announced the amount of the investment to produce vehicles of the Volvo Trucks and Mack Trucks brands for the United States and Canada markets, and the Mack brand for Mexico and Latin America.
Production is expected to begin in 2026. Last month, the company began negotiations with auto parts producers.
The new plant will be built in Ciénega de Flores, located 68 miles northeast of the northern cities of Saltillo, the home of Freightliner, the largest producer of heavy trucks in Mexico, and 16 miles northeast of the city of General de Escobedo, the home of Navistar International Corporation, the second largest producer of heavy trucks in Mexico.
Data from the International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (OICA), viewed by SteelOrbis, shows that in 2023 Mexico was the world's fifth largest producer of heavy trucks in the world with a global share of 6 percent, surpassed by the United States (9 percent), India (9 percent), Japan (13 percent) and China (44 percent).
There are 12 companies producing heavy vehicles (trucks and buses) in Mexico: Freightliner, International Truck, Kenworth, Mercedes-Benz Buses, Isuzu, Foton, Volkswagen Trucks and Buses, Volvo Buses, Hino, Dina, MAN and Shacman (Shaanxi Automobile Group).
Volvo has a bus plant in Tultitlán, in the central state of Mexico. That city is located 26 miles from Mexico City, the country's largest market. In 2023, of the nearly 223,000 heavy vehicles manufactured in Mexico, Volvo Buses only contributed 0.5 percent of the total.