Volkswagen (VW) is considering building a component assembly plant in Ethiopia. According to the company’s Spokesperson, Andile Dlamini, the company was investigating entering Ethiopia. He said the “component assembly is the initial business we are looking at. Vehicle assembly is also under consideration in the long term.”

Dlamini said it was usual in the industry to start with small semi-knocked-down assembly facilities until the markets developed to validate manufacturing. “This is how Volkswagen commenced its operation in China 30 years ago. Today Volkswagen manufactures over 6 million cars a year in China.” 

The Spokesperson stated the company would keep on investigating opportunities “as and when they present themselves. After having signed the MOUs in Ghana and Nigeria … the next country we are in discussion with is Ethiopia to explore potential opportunities going forward. This is more around component supply than vehicle assembly.”

In Nigeria, VW undertook applying a staged approach in relation to the assembly of vehicles. 

Source: The New Times