Tritec Motors was established through a joint venture between BMW and Chrysler to manufacture in Brazil 1.4 and 1.6 litre engines in 1997 for Mini and PT Cruiser models to be sold in South Africa, Europe and other external markets.

Fiat Powertrain Technologies (FPT) signed an agreement with Chrysler L.L.C yesterday (Wednesday) for the total acquisition of the former's Tritec Motors unit located in the city of Campo Largo in the south of Brazil.

This acquisition covers the land, the industrial unit, the production lines and the license for production of the current products. The total investment will be of R$ 250 million reais (approximately 83 million euros), including development costs. Together with the purchase of one of the most modern engine building factories in the world, FPT also announced the production of a new range of midsize engines incorporating petrol and flex fuel (petrol alcohol) versions.

Fiat’s centres of engineering in Brazil and Italy, and the engineers of Tritec unit, will accomplish the development of these new engines in an integrated way. The acquisition by FPT should generate about 500 employment positions in the unit and another 1,500 jobs in the industrial area of Campo Largo.

"The purchase of the industrial unit at Campo Largo will allow the company to reach two important strategic objectives, the enlargement of the current range of Fiat engines and increasing further our sales for new potentially customers,” affirmed the CEO of FPT Alfredo Altavilla.

"The announcement today is without any doubt an important factor that guarantees the future for Tritec Motors unit,” according to the Vice Chairman and President of Chrysler Tom LaSorda.

FPT – Fiat Powertrain Technologies South America

FPT has 3,500 professionals in its three units in South America located in Betim and Sete Lagoas in Brazil, and Córdoba in Argentina, dedicated to the development and research of engines using alternative fuels. The unit of at Betim is located in the metropolitan area of Belo Horizonte (capital of Minas Gerais) and is the largest plant of the company in Latin America with an annual production of 1.2 million units a year of engines and transmissions.

The unit in Sete Lagoas, in spite of being physically smaller than Betim, represents an important standard of production and flexibility, with a range of four diesel engine families: C, N, F1C and 8140, offering the biggest range of output and torque destined towards several types of applications.

Tritec Motors

Tritec Motors’s unit has 40 thousand square meters and is located in an area of 1.27 million square meters. The company was established by a joint venture between BMW and Chrysler to manufacture in Brazil 1.4 and 1.6 litre engines in 1997 for Mini and PT Cruiser models to be sold in South Africa, Europe and other external markets. In July of 2007 with the end of the joint venture between Chrysler and BMW, the company produced its last engine. To restart the production FPT will invest strongly in technology, quality and workforce training.

“The investments by FPT could transform this industrial unit into the largest centre of production of midsize engines in Latin America, focusing on local and external markets,” according to the superintendent of FPT for Mercosul (Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentine) Franco Ciranni.

by Claudio Perlini