Nissan Motor Co. said on 15 July it will cease vehicle production at its Oppama plant in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, by the end of fiscal 2027, or March 2028, and transfer assembly to its Nissan Motor Kyushu facility in Fukuoka. The automaker will maintain research, crash-test and other non-manufacturing operations at the site. Chief Executive Officer Ivan Espinosa called the move “a difficult but necessary decision” as the company presses ahead with a restructuring programme that aims to trim global production capacity to 2.5 million vehicles from 3.5 million and cut the number of manufacturing sites to 10 from 17. As part of the same plan, Nissan’s subsidiary Nissan Shatai will halt vehicle output at its Shonan factory by March 2027. Opened in 1961 and long dubbed Nissan’s “mother factory,” Oppama employs roughly 2,400 people and has produced more than 17.8 million vehicles, including the Leaf electric car and the Note compact. Nissan said it will keep the plant’s workforce on payroll through fiscal 2027 and discuss redeployment or relocation with labour unions. The company is exploring options for repurposing or selling the Oppama site and will disclose related costs alongside its first-quarter results. Espinosa added that Nissan does not plan further domestic plant closures once the Oppama and Shonan exits are completed.