THE JAPAN NEWS
 
Toyota Motor Corp. said it will increase production in 2016 and later of its Mirai fuel cell vehicle, which was released in Japan in December.
 
Toyota will increase its annual production capacity from 700 units to about 2,000 units in 2016 and to about 3,000 units in 2017.
 
Production of the core parts of the vehicle, such as fuel cell stacks and high-pressure hydrogen tanks, will be boosted through investment of about ¥20 billion.
 
Fuel cell stacks produce electricity through a chemical reaction of hydrogen and oxygen. High-pressure hydrogen tanks save hydrogen as fuel.
 
Increased production will take place at the automaker’s main plants in Aichi Prefecture, central Japan.
 
Orders for the Mirai have reached about 1,500 units in one month since its launch, almost four times the annual estimated number of 400 units.
 
In the current production capacity, delivery takes up to three years.
 
Planning to release the car in Europe and the United States in the autumn, Toyota has considered raising its production.