Information collected from media reports over the past month:
- Aerospace: American aircraft maker Hawker Beechcraft is joining forces with Mexican executive jet operator Aerolineas Executivas to build a new maintenance facility to serve private aircraft in the northeastern city of Monterrey. The US$2.2 million project is planned to provide repair and painting services in the country’s second largest private aviation hub. (El Financiero, January 2, 2012)
- Automotive: Japan-based Nissan Motor Co. is preparing plans to build a new automobile factory in Mexico. The new facility will add production capacity to the company’s two existing plants in Mexico which currently have capacity to produce over 700,000 vehicles a year. (Wall Street Journal, January 6, 2012)
- Automotive: Japanese automaker Nissan announced it will construct a new vehicle assembly plant in the central state of Aguascalientes at an estimated cost of US$2 billion. The large-scale plan includes a supplier park nearby the new manufacturing facility, which will become Nissan’s third in Mexico. (Autoweek, January 25, 2012)
- Aviation: European aerospace manufacturer Airbus announced an order from Mexican airline Volaris for the purchase of 44 new A320Neo and A320 aircraft. The total value of the deal, planned for delivery 2015 – 2020, was estimated at approximately US$4 billion. (AFP, January 12, 2012)
- Aviation: U.S.-based aerospace manufacturer Hawker Beechcraft announced the sale of six new T-6C+ training aircraft to the Mexican Air Force, with the possibility of additional future orders. The value of the deal was not specified. (Defense Media Network, January 11, 2012)
- Electricity: German electronics and electrical engineering giant Siemans inaugurated a Low Voltage Research and Development Center near the northeastern city of Monterrey. The company invested approximately US$22 million in the new facility, which will help to develop high efficiency electrical systems for Siemens products. (Reforma, January 13, 2012)
- Retail: Mexican grocery and general merchandise retailer Soriana announced plans to open 50 new sales locations in the country this year. The company currently operates 558 stores across its five formats. (Reforma, January 16, 2012)
- Logistics: The Mexican affiliate of Philippines-based International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) has begun construction on a new container handling terminal at the Pacific port of Manzanillo. The new facility will require investment of US$250 million. (Maquila Portal, January 17, 2012) Read the rest of this entry »
MBAE & Helimex, a trade show focused on aviation equipment and services for business use, will be held February 28 to March 2, 2011 at the Toluca International Airport just west of Mexico City. The show features 40 – 50 industry-specific exhibitors and is closed to the general public. Toluca is the principal hub of Mexico’s business aviation industry. For more information, see 
Mexico’s aerospace industry has posted astounding growth in recent years, turning the country into a key global aerospace manufacturer in the process. Mexico has been the world’s number one destination for aerospace manufacturing investment over the past two decades, with over US$1 billion in 2008 alone, according to the recent report Aerospace Globalization 2.0: The Next Stage, by industry consultants AeroStrategy. The country’s aviation industry has flown through quite a bit of turbulence (sorry) over the same period, but nonetheless represents an important market for products and services, between the commercial airlines, private air transport service providers and law enforcement and military fleets. The biennial Aero Expo coming up December 3-5 offers a great opportunity to meet the key players in NAFTA-region aerospace and aviation. Um, in Acapulco.