SAIC Motor announced it would launch commercial production of vehicles in Pakistan this month, as China’s largest vehicle manufacturer looks to step up its expansion in the south Asian market.
The plant is operated by local company MG JW Automobile, a joint venture between SAIC Motor International and local company JW-SEZ. It is located in the Raiwind special economic cone in Lahore.
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Yu De, managing director of SAIC Motor International, said in a statement: “Our plant’s renovation will be finished this month so we can soon supply locally produced vehicles in Pakistan.”
The first pre-production model came off the assembly line in May.
So farm the company has relied on imports from China, with models such as the HS, ZS and ZS EV proving popular in the country despite incurring import tariffs of up to 75%.
Yu added: “We are confident in the Pakistani market. We will scale up our investment and introduce our latest models and best service here.”
SAIC Motor has stepped up its global expansion this year, with overseas sales more than doubling to 265,000 vehicles in the first half of 2021, and is on track to meet the company’s full year target of 550,000 units.
Yu said: “Considering the growth in the first half and models we are going to launch in the second half, there will be no problem for us to reach our full-year target.”
