KARACHI: Master Motor Corporation (Pvt) Limited (MMCL) Friday signed a joint venture with Chinese automotive brand Changan Automobiles for $100 million investment in the local auto industry to contribute to the indigenisation of the automobile industry of Pakistan.
Changan Automobile Assistant President and Overseas Business Development Department General Manager Wang Huanran and Master Motors Limited Chairman Nadeem Malik signed the agreement to pool their resources and expertise to achieve the common goal of becoming Pakistan’s leading automobile company by 2025.
“We are excited to see the market potential not only in Pakistan but also the export opportunities we can tap. Changan has selected Pakistan as the base country for right-hand drive vehicles (RHD) to export to RHD countries,” said Wang Huanran while talking to media after the ceremony.
He said that Changan is the largest selling Chinese brand in China for 10 years in a row touching annual volume of 2,870,000 units with wide range of world-class products in LCV, SUV, MPV and passenger car segments through joint ventures in China with manufacturers like Suzuki, Ford, PSA, Mazda, Bosch, Aisin and Scheffler.
Also, Changan has partnered with internet services firm Tencent to form a subsidiary to develop the ‘internet of vehicles’ (IoV) and is the first company to introduce level 2 autonomous technology in mass production cars in China.
Master Motors Limited Chairman Nadeem Malik said that Master Group is working in the automotive industry for two decades and producing esteemed truck and bus brands and has so far sold over 17,000 vehicles in Pakistan.
“Pakistan has huge potential in terms of motorisation index since it is ranked 160th in the world with only 18 vehicles per 1,000 inhabitants. Together with Changan, we can tap the market potential while leading on the technology front and offering latest technologies at an affordable price to deliver unprecedented value to the customers,” he added.
Master Motors Limited Chief Executive Officer Danial Malik said that “We aim to bring value and cutting-edge technology to every segment of the market, with an emphasis on SUVs, MPVs, and LCVs, followed by passenger cars and electric vehicles”.
“This joint venture with Changan will not only create thousands of jobs in the industry but also promote the Pakistani vendor base through technology transfer via localisation,” he added.
He said that our plant is being established in Karachi and will start production in December 2018 with the plant capacity of 30,000 units in double shift. “We will start with few thousand units a year and will reach our full production capacity within 3 years’ time,” he added.
“We are in the process of selecting dealers to be part of our network to serve our customers better by ensuring services and spare parts availability in all major cities,” said Danial Malik inviting the dealers who can uplift the integrity of the Changan brand and provide customers with a world-class experience.
