Heading
Close X
Menu
The year has started with a bang, and Haval South Africa is proud to announce that Great Wall Motors (GWM) and General Motors (GM) announced earlier this month that they are entering an agreement for the sale of the GM manufacturing facilities in Rayong, Thailand (subject to certain regulatory approvals). These facilities include a vehicle assembly plant, as well as a powertrain plant.
The strategic acquisition of the Rayong plants will provide GWM with a springboard to expand into Thailand and its associated ASEAN markets. The investment is poised to create countless local jobs and boost development throughout the supply chain, including research and development and a variety of related industries.
Mr. Liu Xiangshang, vice president of global strategy for GWM, was quoted as saying that the decision to move expansion into this particular territory comes after ten years of strategy development in this regard. “The Rayong site has produced nearly 1.4 million trucks and large SUVs for domestic and export markets as a regional manufacturing hub for mid-size trucks, SUVs and diesel engines since manufacturing commenced in 2000,” explains Xiangshang.
This pace of production will be a great boon for GWM when they take over the facilities, hopefully by the end of this year, once all approvals are in place. The Chinese automobile manufacturer currently has 70+ holding subsidiaries and 60 000+ employees worldwide, selling 1 million+ vehicles annually for four years running. This includes sales in 60+ territories other than China, as far-flung as South Africa, Russia, Australia and more.
“The acquisition of GM's Thai Rayong plant will help the business development of Great Wall Motors in Thailand and the ASEAN market. Great Wall Motors will expand through the entire ASEAN region with Thailand as the centre and export its products to other ASEAN countries as well as Australia,” enthused Xiangshang.
Keep an eye on our blog and social pages to stay in the know, and get in touch with a UM Haval and GWM dealership to learn more about the sought-after bakkies and SUVs we currently have on our showroom floors in sunny South Africa. In the meantime, you may also want to take a few of our current Haval and GWM models for a test drive, so you can get a taste of what you’re in for! HAVAL – Driven to impress.
