Nissan may buy closed Ford, GM plants

In what is surely a sign of the times, Nissan is reportedly considering buying assembly plants closed by General Motors and Ford. "Everything depends on what's available, when it's available and then what our needs are," Daniel Gaudette, senior vice president of North American manufacturing and supply chain management told Reuters in an interview. "We certainly would consider any viable opportunity."

Nissan is in desperate need of increased capacity, and sharing plants was believed to be a major goal of Nissan's now-dead attempt at forming an alliance with General Motors. The company's North American plants are believed to be at 85 to 90 percent capacity, and several new products are in the works.

GM is closing a dozen factories through 2008, while Ford plans to axe 16 facilities by 2012.