Mitsubishi plans to launch eight plug-in hybrid and electric cars by the fiscal year 2015-2016, and to double operating profit in the next three years by focusing on emerging markets.
The rollout starts this year with a mini commercial truck version of its i-MiEV electric car.
The new models will also include Mitsubishi’s first plug-in hybrid cars, to be rolled out in the fiscal year starting April 2012, the company said as it unveiled a new mid-term business plan.
The lineup is also expected to include a plug-in hybrid SUV based on the Px-MiEV concept. Both, the mini commercial electric truck and the plug-in hybrid SUV were showed at the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show.
Mitsubishi said it would build a third factory in Thailand, making it Mitsubishi’s second-largest export hub after Japan. Mitsubishi will also increase capacity in China and Brazil, and begin full-scale production of Outlander-based SUVs with its partner PSA in Russia.
The new global small car, which Mitsubishi plans to initially build in Thailand, is among the cars Mitsubishi plans to bring to the U.S., along with the Retooled and larger for U.S. tastes widebody version of the Mitsubishi i-MiEV electric car, which goes on sale late this year.
Japan’s sixth-biggest car maker by sales volume plans to kill its current lineup of U.S.-made cars, including the Eclipse sporty car and Endeavor crossover, over the next three years and switch to producing global cars at its Illinois plant based on the platform underpinning the Outlander crossover, Outlander Sport small crossover and Lancer sedan.
Mitsubishi aims to double operating profit to 90 billion yen ($1.10 billion) in the year to March 2014 and triple net profit to 45 billion yen.
Global output is to soar to 1.58 million units from 1.1 million in the same period, the company said. It plans to exports more cars from its U.S. plant, raising the export ratio to 50% from 17% in the last fiscal year.
