Volvo to make Shah Alam plant export hub for Asean mart

KUALA LUMPUR: Volvo Car Manufacturing Malaysia Sdn Bhd is looking at making its Shah Alam production plant an export hub for the Asean market.

“We have been exporting Volvo cars to northern Thailand for nine years. In sequence, there will be more countries in the Asean region taking cars from our Shah Alam plant,” said managing director Lennart Stegland at a press conference, here, after the launch of the new Volvo S90 and V90.

The Shah Alam production plant was established in 1967 and, over the years, it has produced close to 65,000 vehicles.

Stegland added that the Shah Alam plant was its only completely-knocked-down plant in the world.

“We once had it in Thailand and Indonesia. Now, the only remaining spot is in Malaysia. We are looking at the context of Asean trade agreement and we have an advantage of being in Malaysia,” said Stegland.

The plant was running slightly below 50 per cent of its production capacity, he said.

The maximum production capacity of the Shah Alam plant is 7,000 units.

“The plant is currently producing about 3,000 units. We plan to increase production by making the plant a hub for Asean countries. We are looking at exporting to Vietnam, Myanmar, the Philippines and Indonesia,” he said.

Stegland is positive on this year’s outlook, after it recorded a growth of almost 50 per cent