Japan’s INOAC to set up automotive component production facility here

INOAC, a top Japanese conglomerate, has expressed willingness to set up a world class automotive component manufacturing facility in Sri Lanka, CEO of the company Soichi Inoue revealed, at the launch of an advanced soft foam production plant of INOAC Polmer Lanka at the BOI Industrial Zone, Horana recently.

He was of the view that the time is opportune to launch a vehicle component manufacturing unit in Sri Lanka as companies like Maruti Suzuki India were considering the possibility of setting up vehicle assembly plants in the island.

INOC, a global supplier to the automotive industry, can take the advantage of providing automotive components to such assembly plants in a big way, Mr. Soichi Inoue told the Business Times on the sidelines of the launching ceremony of the advanced soft foam production plant in Horana recently.

Mr. Soichi disclosed that his company is a tier one producer of automotive components for Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Mitsubishi, Yamaha and several other renowned global brands.

Maruti, which is a subsidiary of Japanese automobile manufacturer Suzuki, is undertaking a feasibility study for the setting up of the assembly facility in Sri Lanka, official sources said.

A few sites around Colombo are being looked at for economic viability to locate the factory and certain issues are involved in that had to be settled, these sources revealed.

INOC is a privately-held Japanese conglomerate set up in 1926, and operates in 20 countries including USA, Canada, Korea, Japan, South East Asia and Europe. It has 74 state-of-the-art factories across the world.

The company’s relationship with Sri Lanka runs as far back as 1959, when it launched its first joint venture with Associated Motorways (AMW).