Toyota, Isuzu and Hino said Wednesday they are setting up a partnership in commercial vehicles to work together in electric, hydrogen, connected and autonomous driving technologies. Under the deal, Toyota Motor Corp. and Isuzu Motors will each take a 4.6% stake in each other. Hino Motors is Toyota’s truck division and had been Isuzu’s rival.
The 39 million shares of Isuzu common stock that Toyota is acquiring are worth 42.8 billion yen, or about $400 million. Isuzu will acquire Toyota shares worth the same value. The co-operation among Toyota, Isuzu and Hino is designed to reduce emissions by building hydrogen infrastructure, and to help solve the nation’s shortage of drivers by sharing information online and making deliveries more efficient.
The three companies plan to develop electric vehicles, fuel cell vehicles, autonomous driving and electronic platforms for trucks, allowing them to cut costs, promote ecological infrastructure and boost traffic safety. Apart from their mutual stake holdings, Isuzu, Hino, and Toyota are jointly setting up a company called Commercial Japan Partnership Technologies Corp. in Tokyo, to promote their partnership and plan technology and services. Capitalized at 10 million yen ($93,000), the new company will be 80% owned by Toyota, 10% each by Isuzu and Hino.
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