Mitsubishi Motors Corp. has decided to close a plant in Illinois after giving up on finding a buyer for it, company sources said Thursday.
The automaker plans to end parts production at the plant in May and dismiss around 250 workers, the sources said. It halted vehicle production at the site in November and cut around 1,000 jobs.
Mitsubishi Motors is expected to book a special loss due to severance pay and other costs, although details have yet to be disclosed.
In July, Mitsubishi Motors decided to end vehicle production in the United States due to sluggish sales in North America. The Illinois plant produced sport utility vehicles.
It is now consolidating production at the company's plant in Okazaki, Aichi Prefecture, from where vehicles will be exported to the United States.
Mitsubishi Motors began production of its vehicles in the United States in 1988 through a joint venture with Chrysler Corp. and later acquired a full stake in the joint venture.