Anduril in talks to buy Nissan’s historic Japan plant for drone production

U.S. defense technology firm Anduril Industries is in discussions to acquire Nissan Motor's Oppama assembly plant south of Tokyo, with plans to convert the historic auto factory into a military drone manufacturing hub, according to a Reuters report published on Wednesday citing three sources familiar with the matter.reuters+1

No final decision has been reached, and the sources said Nissan is still in contact with other potential buyers for the facility, which the automaker announced last year it would shutter by March 2028 as part of a broader restructuring. Anduril would also need to secure orders from Japan's Self-Defense Forces to justify the acquisition, the sources said.straitstimes+1

A Symbol of Industrial Revival

The Oppama plant, located in Kanagawa Prefecture about an hour south of Tokyo by train, opened in 1961 and has produced roughly 18 million vehicles over its lifetime. It was the birthplace of the Nissan Leaf, the company's first mass-market electric vehicle, in 2010. Nissan announced in July 2025 that it would close the factory as part of plans to trim production capacity by one million vehicles, offering its 2,400 workers positions elsewhere in Japan.ETManufacturing+3

The sprawling site includes research, testing, and port facilities covering 1.7 million square meters. Anduril has not yet determined how much of the campus it would need but has offered to retrain the plant's workers to produce defense equipment, one of the sources told Reuters.straitstimes

Nissan declined to comment on whether it was in talks with Anduril, saying only that no decision had been made on the plant's future ownership. Anduril said it would not comment on "market speculation" but noted it is working with Japan and "exploring opportunities to strengthen local production capabilities".finance.sina.com.cn+1

Part of a Broader Indo-Pacific Push

The potential acquisition fits into Anduril's rapid expansion across the Indo-Pacific. The company opened a Tokyo office in December 2025 and unveiled a prototype drone called Kizuna, built entirely with Japanese components, to demonstrate it could meet Japan's localization requirements. It has also established offices in Taiwan and South Korea, signing partnerships with Taiwan's National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology and Korean Air to co-develop unmanned systems.japantimes+3

The talks come as Japan pushes to bolster its defense-industrial base. The government has designated drones as critical materials under its Economic Security Promotion Act and aims to build annual production capacity of 80,000 units by 2030, subsidizing up to half of research and capital costs. Anduril, meanwhile, won a U.S. Air Force contract earlier this month to produce semi-autonomous combat drones alongside General Atomics, underscoring its growing manufacturing ambitions.AM Insight Asia+1