Ahmedabad, 13 January 2012

The Japan-headquartered sanitary ware maker Toto Ltd said Thursday it will build a plant in Gujarat to annually produce 500,000 units of sanitary ware such as lavatory and washing basins. The company will commence construction of its Gujarat plant in March 2012, with production expected to commence in July 2014.

The sanitary ware maker, headquartered in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture, started sanitary ware sales in India in 2001 and expects to achieve some 600 million yen in sales there for fiscal 2011 through March according to a report.

Earlier reports published in section of media suggest that the Gujarat plant, on completion, will supply TOTO products to the markets in India, Japan, East Asia, and even the Middle East.

Toto has been exporting its products to India since 2001 from its manufacturing facilities in Japan, China, Thailand and Vietnam. TOTO has 26 factories the world over. The company’s flagship products like Neorest, washlet, Basic + suite, bath tub etc. are increasingly gaining acceptance in luxury hotels in Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai and other cities.

According to another report published in last year, the company has acquired Gujarat Industrial Development Corp. (GIDC)-owned land from Hindustan Motors Ltd (HM) for the project, just adjacent to the existing General Motors Co. unit at Halol. After forming its Indian subsidiary, Toto India Industries Pvt. Ltd, the company had signed a memorandum of understanding with Gujarat government for an estimated investment of $220 million in March 2011.

Earlier the company had proposed Rs 700 crore investment during Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors’ Summit, 2011.