PETALING JAYA: Automaker Stellantis has secured full ownership of Naza Automotive Manufacturing Sdn Bhd and its manufacturing plant located in Gurun, Kedah.
The completed acquisition marks a significant milestone for Stellantis in Southeast Asia, with plans to invest and dramatically expand its footprint as part of a robust localisation strategy.
Stellantis senior vice-president Asean & general distributors Christophe Musy said it is committed to growing its presence in Asean, and taking full ownership and responsibility of the plant in Gurun is an important step towards strengthening its operations, production outputs and workforce in the region.
“We have an ambitious growth strategy that will enable us to build on the existing production outputs in Gurun, as well as extend the breadth of brands and models within the Stellantis portfolio built in Asean for Asean. This is an exciting proposition.”
Stellantis recently restarted manufacturing in Gurun with the launch of the refreshed Peugeot 3008 and 5008 currently rolling out across the region.
Furthermore, the much-anticipated Peugeot 2008 will also commence production this month in Gurun, bringing to the Asean region a lucrative new compact SUV offering from the high-end brand.
“We are focused on our mission to achieve world-class manufacturing in Gurun – to build high-quality, Malaysian-produced vehicles for Southeast Asia. This includes the internationally-acclaimed refreshed 3008 and 5008, and the new Peugeot 2008 – three vehicles that will elevate the superior offering of the Peugeot brand in this region,” said Musy.
The Stellantis manufacturing plant in Gurun has achieved pre-pandemic production rates since it restarted operations, with volumes now ramping up for the remainder of 2021 to re-establish car flow to Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and other Asean markets.
“In spite of the pandemic, we see increased customer demand for Peugeot in the region. We are working closely with our partners to increase plant capacity by almost 40% to meet demand,” said Musy.
Stellantis obtained full ownership of the Gurun manufacturing plant on Oct 28, previously operating as a joint venture with Naza Corp. Over 170 employees have returned to work and Stellantis is working with over 50 local suppliers as production increases for the last quarter of 2021.